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I possess a few opinions about that comments delivered by ESPN commentator Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's win over Taylor Fritz in the New York major quarter-finals. Look – the athlete represents American, Fowler is from the US – and athletic competitions frequently encourage nationalism. Some letdown was understandable. Rather, Fowler brought up the ongoing drought of US male players at the majors: not one of them had lifted a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the competition.

Everyone enjoy a storyline, me too. But come on. Even if Fritz had beaten Djokovic for the first time, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the following match, who Fritz has never defeated in an official match. And if he’d somehow gotten past that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. The two young stars had also divided the last seven major titles (and the Spaniard went on to defeat a tired Djokovic in the next round). Fritz said in post-match interviews following his defeat that he in fact liked his draw, because it offered the opportunity to defeat the top three players in the sport back-to-back. He is more than justified to aspire to the accomplishment; an athlete is meant to believe in themselves. But going into that Djokovic last eight match what other person sensibly had the drought of American champions on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the sole barrier between her and sustained success

The American, twenty-eight, is placed number four in the global rankings starting the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his last six matches over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. It's likely he might claim that position for himself in the coming years. But evidently that right now, that’s as far as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard lie 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 opponents on the ATP tour. When facing the select few generational talents, however, he is frequently overmatched. The last several years has witnessed the curious rise of lanky, towering athletes who can nonetheless move around with the alarming quickness and grace of much shorter men. He is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His movement is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he’ll rarely win a rally that the opponent was dictating, and hitting a drop shot against him is typically a safe bet. That serves as a quite harsh restriction on his potential.

Fritz has achieved a number of significant, unexpected improvements over the years. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was circling the bottom of the world's best thirty. Two years after, he was approaching the elite ten. The previous season, he unexpectedly exploded up to No 4 – and held the position. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and including a declining Serbian, is the highest of all. What could the commentator have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the continuing slump of US male players lifting grand slams when Fritz had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just excessive and the respect for the magnitude of the task insufficient.

The American star made a career-best advancement to the Wimbledon semi-finals in July.

The American's play in that exact quarter-final ought to have been enough of an indication. Djokovic triumphed in four sets, a win that only felt uncertain for moments towards the very end, when Fritz had survived a couple championship opportunities and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the rallies, with Fritz earning numerous opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic saved service break opportunity after break point, prolonging the streak to the point of frustration. When Fritz eventually did convert a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly played a horrendous service game to lose his own serve again; the Serbian had lulled him into a skirmish peripheral to the main contest and compelled him to use excessive energy to prevail. Down match points in the last game, his primary delivery floated to heaven. He prolonged the match two times on his second serve, but finally double-faulted. It wasn’t a collapse, I didn’t think, just a result of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The contest was fairly compelling proof that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to beat any version of the Serbian, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the next round and did not particularly appeared like he thought he could triumph. This is absolutely acceptable – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the peak of his athletic abilities anymore, but has acquired sufficient knowledge and strategic intelligence to compensate for a significant portion of the drop-off. The problem is those who were anticipating the American to prevail, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was had not accomplished anything that indicated he would.

Fritz is an asset to the tour regardless. He’s a patient, reflective presence in press conferences, exceeding virtually anyone on the men's tour aside from Daniil Medvedev, willing to not only say how he feels or the strategy he felt decided a contest, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the blame for the United States failing to produce a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist seems unjust. (Since the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, maybe they can share that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Division

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

“I’d probably dwell on it forever if I fail to accomplish it,” the American informed an interviewer in the summer of winning a major. It is hoped he understands that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t fulfill that objective, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable empire is in fact extremely improbable for all other players. {