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I have some opinions about the remarks made by ESPN broadcaster Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's win over the American player during the US Open last eight. Look – the athlete represents American, the commentator is from the US – and athletic competitions often encourage nationalism. Some letdown would have been appropriate. Rather, Fowler brought up the ongoing drought of US male players at the majors: none of them had lifted a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the competition.

Everyone love a narrative, me too. But come on. Suppose the American defeated Djokovic for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the following match, whom he has yet to beat in an official match. And had he somehow gotten past that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the last seven grand slams (plus the Spaniard proceeded to defeat a fatigued Serbian in the subsequent match). He said in press after the loss that he actually liked his draw, because it offered the chance to defeat the top three players in the sport back-to-back. He is well justified to aim for the accomplishment; an athlete is meant to have faith in themselves. But entering that Serbian last eight match what other person sensibly had the lack of American champions in mind?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the sole barrier standing in her way and sustained success

Fritz, twenty-eight, is placed fourth in the global rankings entering this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his previous six matches over third-ranked the German with growing comfort. Presumably he might take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that is as high as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a chasm of ranking points away. Fritz’s elite serve and concussive power on each front side and reverse side are more than enough to defeat the majority of opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, however, Fritz is frequently helpless. The last several seasons has seen the interesting rise of tall, gangly players who can nonetheless move around with the alarming speed and grace of much shorter men. He is six-foot-five and looks it. His footwork is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his legs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the other player was dictating, and playing a drop shot versus him is usually a safe bet. That acts as a quite severe limitation on his upside.

The American has made a number of significant, improbable improvements over the years. Early on of the decade, he was circling the lower end of the world's best thirty. Two years after, he was approaching the elite ten. The previous season, he suddenly surged to No 4 – and held the position. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and defeating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, Sinner, and even a aging Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the continuing drought of US male players winning grand slams when Fritz had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just excessive and the appreciation for the magnitude of the challenge too little.

The American star made a personal best run to the Wimbledon last four in July.

Fritz’s performance in that very last eight match should have been sufficient of an indication. Djokovic triumphed in four sets, a victory that only felt tenuous for brief periods towards the conclusion, when the American had saved a couple match points and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the exchanges, with Fritz earning numerous opportunities to break. But the champion saved break point after service break opportunity, prolonging the run to the brink of frustration. When he finally did claim a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately played a horrendous service game to drop serve once more; the Serbian had lulled him into a skirmish peripheral to the real battle and compelled him to expend excessive effort to win it. Facing match points in the final game, Fritz’s primary delivery sailed to heaven. He prolonged the contest two times on his second serve, but ultimately committed two errors. It wasn’t a collapse, I didn’t think, only a consequence of needing to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The match was fairly compelling evidence that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to beat any version of Djokovic, who lost to Alcaraz in the next round and never particularly appeared like he thought he could win. This is perfectly fine – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has developed sufficient knowledge and strategic intelligence to make up for a significant portion of the decline. The problem is those who were expecting Fritz to win, and pressuring him to do so, when he was had not done anything that indicated he could.

Fritz is an asset to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, thoughtful voice in media sessions, exceeding virtually everyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, prepared to not just express how he feels or the strategy he believed decided a contest, but explain it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for the United States failing to spawn a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist seems unjust. (Now that the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, perhaps they can share that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Division

• The Spanish phenom
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Swedish icon Division

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• The rising American
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely think about it forever if I fail to do it,” the American informed an interviewer in the summer of winning a major. It is hoped he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t fulfill that objective, that breaking through Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable empire is in fact highly improbable for all other players. {