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I possess some thoughts regarding the comments made by ESPN commentator a well-known announcer after Novak Djokovic's victory over the American player during the US Open last eight. Consider – Fritz is American, the commentator is from the US – and athletic competitions often lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. Some disappointment was appropriate. Rather, Fowler invoked the ongoing drought of American men at the majors: none of them had lifted a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the final representative in the tournament.

Everyone love a narrative, myself included. But come on. Even if the American defeated the legend for the initial occasion, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the following match, whom he has yet to beat in an official match. And if he’d someway gotten past that, it would have been title holder the Italian, versus him the American had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. The two young stars had also divided the last seven grand slams (and Alcaraz went on to defeat a tired Djokovic in the next round). He said in press after the loss that he in fact preferred his path, because it presented the chance to defeat the top three players in the sport back-to-back. Fritz is more than justified to aim for the accomplishment; an athlete is meant to have faith in themselves. But entering that Djokovic quarter-final what other person sensibly had the lack of US winners in mind?

The American star's weaker delivery the sole barrier between her and sustained success

Fritz, 28, is ranked fourth in the global rankings starting the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has won his last six encounters over No 3 Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. Presumably he might claim that position for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that at present, that is as high as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard sit a chasm of ranking points away. His elite delivery and concussive power on both front side and reverse side are more than enough to dispose of the majority of rivals on the ATP tour. Against the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, though, Fritz is frequently overmatched. The last several years has witnessed the curious emergence of lanky, towering athletes who can nonetheless move around with the alarming quickness and grace of much shorter men. He is six-foot-five and looks it. His footwork is rigid, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his legs. So he’ll rarely win a rally that the other player was controlling, and hitting a drop shot against him is typically a safe bet. That acts as a pretty severe limitation on his potential.

The American has achieved a number of significant, improbable improvements throughout his career. At the beginning of the decade, he was circling the lower end of the world's best thirty. 24 months after, he was approaching the top 10. Last year, he unexpectedly surged to fourth place – and held the position. But the next leap, mixing it up with and beating legendary figures like Alcaraz, the Italian, and including a aging Serbian, is the highest of all. What could the commentator thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the continuing slump of American men winning major titles when Fritz had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply too much and the appreciation for the magnitude of the task too little.

Taylor Fritz achieved a career-best run to the Wimbledon semi-finals in the summer.

Fritz’s play in that very last eight match ought to have been enough of an sign. Djokovic won in four sets, a victory that only felt tenuous for moments towards the very end, when the American had saved a couple championship opportunities and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the rallies, with the American earning plenty of opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued break point after break point, prolonging the run to the brink of agony. When Fritz eventually did claim one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately played a terrible game to drop serve once more; Djokovic had lulled him into a skirmish peripheral to the real battle and forced him to expend excessive energy to prevail. Facing match points in the final game, his primary delivery floated to the sky. He prolonged the contest twice on his backup delivery, but ultimately double-faulted. It wasn’t a choke, I didn’t think, only a consequence of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The contest was quite compelling evidence that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any form of the Serbian, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the following match and did not especially seem like he thought he could triumph. This is perfectly acceptable – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, 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 problem is the individuals who were anticipating Fritz to win, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was had not done anything that indicated he would.

The American is an asset to the tour nonetheless. He’s a calm, reflective presence in media sessions, exceeding virtually anyone on the ATP aside from the Russian star, willing to not just say how he feels or the tactic he felt determined a contest, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the blame for America not spawn a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist seems unfair. (Since Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, perhaps they can divide that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

American legend Group

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Bjorn Borg Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I’d probably dwell on it indefinitely if I fail to accomplish it,” the American told an interviewer in the summer of claiming a grand slam. I hope he realizes that he’s not a failure if he does not achieve that objective, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying empire is actually highly unlikely for all other players. {