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I possess a few opinions regarding the remarks made by ESPN commentator Chris Fowler following Novak Djokovic's win over Taylor Fritz during the US Open quarter-finals. Consider – Fritz is the United States, the commentator is from the US – and sports often encourage patriotic sentiment. Some disappointment was appropriate. Instead, he invoked the ongoing drought of American men at the majors: not one of them had lifted a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the tournament.

We all enjoy a storyline, myself included. But come on. Suppose Fritz had beaten Djokovic for the initial occasion, force of nature the Spanish star was waiting in the following match, whom Fritz has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And had he someway survived that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, versus him the American had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the previous seven grand slams (plus Alcaraz went on to thrash a tired Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz said in press following his defeat that he in fact liked his path, because it presented the chance to defeat the three best players in the world in succession. Fritz is more than justified to aim for the accomplishment; an competitor is meant to believe in themselves. But entering that Djokovic last eight match who else in their right mind had the lack of US winners on the brain?

The American star's second serve the only thing standing in her way and sustained success

The American, twenty-eight, is ranked number four in the world entering the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has won his last six matches over third-ranked the German with growing comfort. It's likely he could claim that position for himself in the future. But evidently that right now, that’s as high as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a vast gap of ranking points away. His top-class serve and concussive strength on both forehand and reverse side are more than enough to dispose of the majority of opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, though, he is frequently overmatched. The past few seasons has witnessed the interesting rise of lanky, towering players who can nonetheless move around with the surprising speed and grace of smaller men. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His movement is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he seldom win a rally that the opponent was controlling, and hitting a soft shot against him is typically a safe bet. That serves as a pretty severe restriction on his potential.

The American has achieved a number of significant, improbable improvements throughout his career. At the beginning of the decade, he was hovering around the lower end of the world's best thirty. Two years after, he was approaching the elite ten. Last year, he suddenly surged to No 4 – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and even a aging Serbian, is the toughest of all. What was Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the ongoing drought of American men lifting grand slams when he had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just too much and the appreciation for the magnitude of the task insufficient.

Taylor Fritz achieved a personal best advancement to the Wimbledon last four in the summer.

The American's performance in that exact quarter-final should have been enough of an indication. The Serbian won in four sets, a win that only seemed uncertain for brief periods towards the very end, when the American had survived a few championship opportunities and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The duo looked evenly matched during the rallies, with Fritz creating numerous opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued service break opportunity after service break opportunity, prolonging the streak to the brink of frustration. When Fritz finally did claim one of the chances at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately played a terrible service game to lose his own serve once more; Djokovic had drawn him into a skirmish peripheral to the real battle and compelled him to expend excessive effort to win it. Facing set points in the last game, Fritz’s primary delivery sailed to the sky. He prolonged the contest two times on his second serve, but finally double-faulted. It wasn’t a collapse, I didn’t think, just a result of needing to hit too many second serves.

The match was quite compelling proof that the American is insufficiently skilled to beat any version of the Serbian, who was defeated by Alcaraz in the next round and did not especially seem like he thought he could triumph. This is absolutely acceptable – Djokovic is the best player ever, and may not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has developed enough knowledge and tactical know-how to make up for a significant portion of the decline. The issue is the individuals who were anticipating Fritz to win, and pressuring him to do so, when he was had not done anything that suggested he could.

The American is an asset to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in press conferences, exceeding almost anyone on the ATP except for Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not only express how he feels or the strategy he felt determined a match, but explain it. That he ought to shoulder the majority of the blame for the United States failing to spawn a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick seems unjust. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the standings, maybe they can share that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Group

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Group

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• The rising American
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I would likely think about it indefinitely if I fail to accomplish it,” the American told a journalist in June of winning a grand slam. I hope he understands that he’s not a failure if he does not fulfill that goal, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying empire is in fact highly improbable for everybody else. {