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I possess some opinions regarding that comments delivered by ESPN broadcaster Chris Fowler following Novak Djokovic's win over Taylor Fritz in the US Open quarter-finals. Consider – the athlete represents American, the commentator is from the US – and athletic competitions frequently encourage nationalism. Some letdown was appropriate. Rather, he invoked the ongoing drought of American men at grand slam tournaments: not one of them has won a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the competition.

Everyone love a storyline, myself included. But come on. Suppose the American had beaten the legend for the initial occasion, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the following match, whom he has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And if he’d somehow survived that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, against whom Fritz had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the last seven grand slams (and Alcaraz went on to defeat a tired Serbian in the next round). Fritz stated in press after the loss that he in fact liked his draw, because it presented the opportunity to beat the three best competitors in the sport back-to-back. Fritz is well justified to aspire to the achievement; an athlete is supposed to have faith in themselves. But going into that Serbian quarter-final what other person in their right mind had the drought of US winners on the brain?

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

The American, twenty-eight, is ranked number four in the global rankings starting this week’s year-end championships and has won his last six encounters over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. It's likely he could claim that position for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that at present, that is as high as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a chasm of ranking points away. His top-class serve and concussive power on both forehand and backhand are sufficiently adequate to defeat the majority of opponents on the ATP tour. When facing the select few generational talents, though, Fritz is often helpless. The past few years has witnessed the interesting rise of lanky, towering athletes who can nevertheless cover the court with the alarming speed and grace of much shorter men. He is six-foot-five and appears that way. His movement is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he seldom win a rally that the other player was controlling, and hitting a drop shot against him is usually a reliable tactic. That serves as a pretty harsh limitation on his potential.

Fritz has made a several dramatic, improbable improvements over the years. Early on of the ten-year period, he was circling the lower end of the world's best thirty. 24 months after, he was sniffing the top 10. The previous season, he suddenly surged to fourth place – and held the spot. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and including a aging Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What was the commentator thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate commenting on the continuing drought of American men winning grand slams when he had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the task too little.

The American star made a personal best run to the All England Club semi-finals in the summer.

The American's play in that exact quarter-final should have been sufficient of an indication. Djokovic won in four sets, a win that only felt uncertain for brief periods towards the very end, when the American had saved a couple championship opportunities and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair looked evenly matched during the rallies, with the American creating plenty of opportunities to break. But Djokovic saved break point after break point, extending the run to the point of agony. When Fritz eventually did convert one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the second set, he promptly produced a terrible service game to drop serve once more; Djokovic had drawn him into a skirmish peripheral to the main contest and forced him to expend far too much effort to win it. Down match points in the final game, Fritz’s first serve sailed to heaven. He extended the match twice on his backup delivery, but ultimately committed two errors. It was not a collapse, I didn’t think, only a result of needing to hit too many second serves.

The contest was quite compelling proof that Fritz is not good enough to defeat any version of the Serbian, that was defeated by Alcaraz in the next round and did not especially seem like he believed he could triumph. This is perfectly fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the height of his athletic abilities anymore, but has developed sufficient knowledge and strategic intelligence to compensate for a significant portion of the decline. The problem is the individuals who were expecting Fritz to win, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was yet to done anything that suggested he could.

Fritz is an asset to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a patient, thoughtful presence in press conferences, exceeding virtually everyone on the ATP aside from Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not just say his emotions or the strategy he believed determined a match, but clarify it. That he should shoulder the majority of the responsibility for the United States failing to spawn a male major champion since Andy Roddick seems unfair. (Now that the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, perhaps they can divide that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

American legend Division

• The Spanish phenom
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Bjorn Borg Group

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

“I would likely dwell on it indefinitely if I don’t accomplish it,” the American informed a journalist in the summer of claiming a grand slam. It is hoped he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not achieve that objective, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable reign is in fact extremely unlikely for all other players. {