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I have a few opinions about the remarks delivered by the sports network broadcaster a well-known announcer following Novak Djokovic's victory over Taylor Fritz in the New York major quarter-finals. Consider – the athlete represents the United States, Fowler is from the US – and athletic competitions often encourage nationalism. A little bit of letdown would have been understandable. Instead, Fowler invoked the ongoing drought of US male players at grand slam tournaments: none of them had lifted a title since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the tournament.

We all love a storyline, me too. But really. Even if the American had beaten the legend for the initial occasion, force of nature the Spanish star was waiting in the next round, whom Fritz has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And had he someway gotten past that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the last seven grand slams (plus Alcaraz proceeded to defeat a tired Serbian in the next round). Fritz said in post-match interviews following his defeat that he actually liked his draw, because it offered the opportunity to beat the three best players in the sport in succession. Fritz is more than within his right to aspire to the achievement; an competitor is meant to believe in themselves. But going into that Djokovic last eight match who else in their right mind had the lack of US winners in mind?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the sole barrier standing in her way and consistent victories

Fritz, twenty-eight, is placed number four in the global rankings starting this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his previous six encounters over No 3 the German with growing comfort. It's likely he could claim that position for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that is as far as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard sit a vast gap of performance metrics away. Fritz’s elite serve and concussive power on each front side and backhand are more than enough to dispose of the majority of rivals on the professional circuit. When facing the select few generational talents, however, he is frequently overmatched. The last several years has seen the curious emergence of lanky, towering players who can nevertheless move around with the surprising speed and fluidity of much shorter men. He is six-foot-five and appears that way. His footwork is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he’ll rarely win a rally that the other player was controlling, and playing a soft shot against him is typically a reliable tactic. That acts as a pretty severe restriction on his upside.

The American has achieved a number of dramatic, unexpected improvements over the years. At the beginning of the decade, he was hovering around the bottom of the top 30. 24 months later, he was approaching the elite ten. The previous season, he unexpectedly exploded up to fourth place – and held the position. But the next leap, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and including a aging Serbian, is the highest of all. What was the commentator have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the ongoing drought of US male players lifting grand slams when he had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply excessive and the appreciation for the magnitude of the task too little.

The American star achieved a career-best run to the All England Club semi-finals in July.

The American's play in that exact quarter-final should have been sufficient of an indication. Djokovic won in four sets, a victory that only felt tenuous for moments towards the conclusion, when Fritz had survived a few championship opportunities and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The duo appeared evenly matched during the exchanges, with the American earning plenty of chances to break. But the champion saved break point after service break opportunity, extending the run to the brink of agony. When he eventually did claim one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately produced a horrendous service game to lose his own serve once more; the Serbian had drawn him into a skirmish peripheral to the real battle and forced him to expend excessive energy to win it. Facing match points in the last game, Fritz’s first serve sailed to heaven. He extended the contest twice on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It wasn’t a choke, in my opinion, only a result of having to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The match was fairly compelling proof that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any version of Djokovic, who was defeated by Alcaraz in the next round and did not particularly seem like he believed he could win. This is absolutely acceptable – Djokovic is the best player ever, and may not be at the peak of his athletic abilities now, but has acquired sufficient experience and strategic intelligence to make up for a significant portion of the drop-off. The issue is the individuals who were expecting the American to prevail, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was yet to done anything that indicated he could.

The American is an asset to the circuit regardless. He’s a patient, thoughtful voice in media sessions, more so than virtually everyone on the men's tour except for Daniil Medvedev, willing to not only say how he feels or the strategy he believed decided a match, but explain it. That he ought to shoulder the majority of the responsibility for America failing to produce a male major champion since Andy Roddick feels unjust. (Now that Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, perhaps they can share that load.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

American legend Group

• The Spanish phenom
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• The Italian stylist

Swedish icon Division

• The Italian champion
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely think about it forever if I fail to accomplish it,” Fritz informed an interviewer in June of claiming a major. It is hoped he understands that he’s not a failure if he does not fulfill that goal, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable reign is actually extremely unlikely for all other players. {