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I possess some thoughts regarding the remarks made by the sports network commentator Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's win over Taylor Fritz during the New York major last eight. Consider – the athlete represents the United States, the commentator is American – and sports frequently encourage nationalism. Some letdown was understandable. Instead, he brought up the ongoing absence of US male players at grand slam tournaments: not one of them had lifted a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all enjoy a storyline, me too. But come on. Suppose Fritz had beaten Djokovic for the first time, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the following match, who Fritz has yet to beat in an official match. And if he’d someway gotten past that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, against whom Fritz had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the last seven grand slams (and Alcaraz went on to defeat a tired Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz stated in press after the loss that he actually preferred his path, because it presented the chance to defeat the top three competitors in the sport in succession. Fritz is more than within his right to aim for the achievement; an competitor is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Serbian last eight match who else in their right mind had the lack of US winners in mind?

The American star's weaker delivery the sole barrier standing in her way and sustained success

Fritz, twenty-eight, is ranked number four in the world starting the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his previous six matches over No 3 Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. Presumably he could take that spot for himself in the future. But evidently that right now, that is as high as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a vast gap of performance metrics away. His top-class serve and concussive strength on both forehand and reverse side are more than enough to dispose of most opponents on the professional circuit. Against the select few generational talents, however, he is frequently helpless. The last several seasons has witnessed the curious emergence of tall, gangly athletes who can nonetheless cover the court with the surprising speed and fluidity of much shorter players. He is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His movement is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he seldom steal a point that the opponent was controlling, and hitting a drop shot versus him is usually a safe bet. That acts as a quite harsh restriction on his upside.

The American has made a several significant, improbable improvements throughout his career. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was hovering around the bottom of the top 30. Two years later, he was sniffing the top 10. Last year, he unexpectedly surged to No 4 – and maintained the spot. But the next leap, mixing it up with and defeating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, the Italian, and even a declining Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the continuing drought of US male players winning grand slams when he had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just too much and the respect for the magnitude of the task too little.

Taylor Fritz made a personal best run to the Wimbledon semi-finals in July.

Fritz’s play in that very last eight match should have been sufficient of an indication. The Serbian triumphed in four sets, a win that only felt uncertain for brief periods towards the very end, when Fritz had saved a few championship opportunities and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the exchanges, with the American earning plenty of chances to break. But Djokovic saved break point after service break opportunity, extending the streak to the brink of frustration. When he finally did claim one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly produced a terrible service game to lose his own serve once more; the Serbian had lulled him into a battle secondary to the main contest and compelled him to use far too much effort to prevail. Down set points in the last game, his first serve sailed to the sky. He prolonged the contest two times on his backup delivery, but finally committed two errors. It was not a choke, in my opinion, just a consequence of having to hit too many second serves.

The match was fairly compelling evidence that Fritz is not good enough to beat any version of Djokovic, who was defeated by Alcaraz in the next round and never particularly appeared like he thought he could triumph. This is absolutely fine – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the height of his athletic abilities anymore, but has developed sufficient knowledge and tactical know-how to make up for quite a bit of the decline. The problem is those who were anticipating the American to prevail, and pressuring him to do so, when he was yet to done anything that indicated he could.

Fritz is an asset to the tour regardless. He’s a calm, reflective presence in media sessions, more so than almost anyone on the men's tour aside from Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not just express his emotions or the strategy he felt decided a contest, but clarify it. That he should shoulder the majority of the responsibility for the United States not spawn a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick seems unjust. (Now that the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, perhaps they can share that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Bjorn Borg Division

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

“I would likely think about it forever if I fail to accomplish it,” the American informed a journalist in the summer of winning a major. I hope he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not achieve that goal, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying empire is in fact extremely improbable for all other players. {