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I have some thoughts about that remarks made by the sports network commentator a well-known announcer following the Serbian champion's victory over Taylor Fritz in the New York major quarter-finals. Look – Fritz is the United States, the commentator is from the US – and athletic competitions often lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. A little bit of disappointment would have been appropriate. Instead, he invoked the continued absence of American men at the majors: not one of them has won a title since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the tournament.

We all love a narrative, myself included. But really. Suppose the American had beaten Djokovic for the first time, force of nature the Spanish star was waiting in the following match, who he has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And had he somehow survived that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, versus him the American had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. The two young stars had also divided the previous seven major titles (plus Alcaraz proceeded to defeat a fatigued Djokovic in the subsequent match). He stated in press following his defeat that he in fact liked his path, because it presented the opportunity to beat the top three players in the world back-to-back. Fritz is more than justified to aim for the accomplishment; an competitor is supposed to believe in themselves. But going into that Serbian quarter-final who else in their right mind had the drought of American champions in mind?

Coco Gauff’s weaker delivery the only thing standing in her way and sustained success

The American, twenty-eight, is ranked fourth in the world entering the upcoming year-end championships and has secured his last six encounters over third-ranked the German with increasing ease. It's likely he could take that spot for himself in the future. But evidently that right now, that is as high as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard sit a vast gap of performance metrics away. His top-class serve and concussive power on both front side and reverse side are sufficiently adequate to defeat most opponents on the ATP tour. When facing the select few generational talents, however, he is frequently overmatched. The past few years has seen the curious rise of tall, gangly players who can nonetheless move around with the alarming speed and fluidity of much shorter men. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His movement is rigid, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he’ll rarely win a rally that the other player was dictating, and hitting a drop shot versus him is typically a reliable tactic. That acts as a pretty harsh limitation on his potential.

Fritz has achieved a several dramatic, unexpected advancements over the years. At the beginning of the decade, he was circling the lower end of the world's best thirty. Two years later, he was sniffing the elite ten. Last year, he unexpectedly exploded up to No 4 – and held the position. But the next leap, mixing it up with and defeating legendary figures like Alcaraz, the Italian, and even a aging Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What could the commentator thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the continuing drought of American men lifting major titles when he had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply excessive and the appreciation for the magnitude of the challenge too little.

The American star achieved a personal best advancement to the Wimbledon semi-finals in July.

Fritz’s play in that exact last eight match should have been sufficient of an indication. Djokovic triumphed in four sets, a victory that only felt uncertain for moments towards the conclusion, when Fritz had survived a few championship opportunities and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The pair looked well-balanced during the exchanges, with the American creating plenty of opportunities to break. But Djokovic rescued break point after break point, prolonging the streak to the brink of frustration. When Fritz eventually did convert a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly played a terrible service game to lose his own serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle peripheral to the real battle and compelled him to expend far too much energy to win it. Down match points in the last game, Fritz’s first serve sailed to the sky. He prolonged the contest two times on his second serve, but finally committed two errors. It was not a choke, in my opinion, only a result of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The contest was fairly compelling evidence that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any version of the Serbian, that was defeated by the Spaniard in the following match and did not especially appeared like he thought he could triumph. This is perfectly fine – the Serbian is the best player ever, and may not be at the peak of his physical powers anymore, but has acquired enough experience and strategic intelligence to make up for quite a bit of the drop-off. The issue is the individuals who were anticipating the American to win, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was had not accomplished anything that suggested he would.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, reflective presence in press conferences, exceeding almost everyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, willing to not only say his emotions or the strategy he felt determined a contest, but explain it. That he should shoulder the majority of the responsibility for the United States failing to produce a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist seems unjust. (Now that Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, maybe they can divide that load.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Division

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably think about it forever if I fail to do it,” the American told a journalist in the summer of winning a major. It is hoped he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t fulfill that goal, that breaking through Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying reign is in fact highly unlikely for everybody else. {