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I have some opinions about that remarks delivered by the sports network broadcaster Chris Fowler following Novak Djokovic's victory over Taylor Fritz in the US Open last eight. Consider – Fritz is American, Fowler is American – and sports frequently lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. A little bit of letdown was understandable. Rather, he brought up the ongoing absence of US male players at grand slam tournaments: none of them had lifted a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all enjoy a storyline, myself included. But come on. Suppose the American defeated Djokovic for the first time, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was waiting in the following match, who Fritz has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And if he’d somehow gotten past that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, against whom the American had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the last seven grand slams (and the Spaniard proceeded to thrash a tired Djokovic in the next round). Fritz stated in press following his defeat that he in fact liked his draw, because it presented the opportunity to defeat the three best competitors in the world back-to-back. Fritz is more than justified to aspire to the achievement; an athlete is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Serbian quarter-final what other person in their right mind had the drought of US winners on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the only thing standing in her way and consistent victories

Fritz, twenty-eight, is ranked number four in the global rankings starting this week’s year-end championships and has secured his last six encounters over No 3 Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. It's likely he could claim that position for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that’s as far as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard lie a chasm of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class serve and concussive strength on both front side and reverse side are sufficiently adequate to dispose of most rivals on the professional circuit. When facing the select few generational talents, though, Fritz is frequently overmatched. The past few seasons has witnessed the interesting rise of lanky, towering players who can nevertheless cover the court with the surprising quickness and grace of smaller men. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His footwork is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he seldom steal a point that the opponent was dictating, and hitting a soft shot against him is usually a safe bet. That serves as a quite harsh limitation on his upside.

The American has achieved a several significant, unexpected improvements throughout his career. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was circling the lower end of the top 30. 24 months after, he was sniffing the top 10. The previous season, he suddenly surged up to fourth place – and held the spot. But the next leap, mixing it up with and defeating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and including a aging Djokovic, is the highest of all. What could the commentator have been thinking? That Fritz, 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 grand slams when Fritz had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just too much and the appreciation for the difficulty of the task insufficient.

The American star achieved a personal best advancement to the All England Club last four in July.

Fritz’s play in that exact quarter-final ought to have been sufficient of an indication. The Serbian won in four sets, a win that only felt tenuous for brief periods towards the conclusion, when the American 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 creating plenty of opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic saved break point after service break opportunity, extending the streak to the point of agony. When he eventually did convert one of the chances at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately produced a terrible service game to drop serve once more; the Serbian had drawn him into a skirmish secondary to the main contest and compelled him to expend far too much energy to win it. Down set points in the final game, Fritz’s primary delivery sailed to the sky. He prolonged the match two times on his backup delivery, but ultimately committed two errors. It wasn’t a choke, I didn’t think, just a consequence of having to hit too many second serves.

The match was quite ironclad proof that the American is not good enough to beat any form of the Serbian, that lost to the Spaniard in the next round and did not particularly seem like he thought he could win. This is absolutely fine – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the peak of his athletic abilities anymore, but has acquired sufficient knowledge and strategic intelligence to make up for a significant portion of the drop-off. The problem is the individuals who were expecting Fritz to win, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was yet to done anything that suggested he could.

The American is an valuable contributor to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in press conferences, more so than virtually everyone on the men's tour aside from the Russian star, prepared to not only say how he feels or the tactic he believed decided a match, but explain it. That he should bear the brunt of the blame for the United States failing to produce a male major champion since Andy Roddick seems unfair. (Since the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, maybe they can share that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

American legend Division

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

Swedish icon Group

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

“I’d probably think about it indefinitely if I don’t accomplish it,” the American informed an interviewer in the summer of claiming a major. It is hoped he understands that he’s not a failure if he does not fulfill that goal, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying empire is actually extremely unlikely for all other players. {