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I possess a few thoughts about that remarks made by the sports network commentator Chris Fowler following Novak Djokovic's win over Taylor Fritz during 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 US male players at the majors: not one of them has won a title since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the final representative in the tournament.

Everyone enjoy a narrative, me too. But really. Suppose Fritz had beaten Djokovic for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the following match, whom he has yet to beat in an official match. And if he’d somehow gotten past that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, against whom Fritz had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the previous seven major titles (plus the Spaniard went on to thrash a fatigued Serbian in the next round). He stated in post-match interviews following his defeat that he in fact liked his draw, because it offered the chance to defeat the top three competitors in the world back-to-back. He is well within his right to aspire to the achievement; an competitor is supposed to have faith in themselves. But entering that Serbian quarter-final who else sensibly had the lack of US winners on the brain?

The American star's second serve the sole barrier between her and consistent victories

Fritz, 28, is ranked fourth in the world entering the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his previous six encounters over third-ranked the German with growing comfort. It's likely he might claim that position for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that is as high as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard lie a chasm of performance metrics away. Fritz’s top-class serve and concussive power on each forehand and reverse side are more than adequate to dispose of the majority of opponents on the ATP tour. When facing the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, though, he is frequently overmatched. The last several years has witnessed the curious emergence of lanky, towering athletes who can nevertheless cover the court with the alarming quickness and fluidity of much shorter men. Fritz is six-foot-five and appears that way. His footwork is rigid, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he seldom win a rally that the other player was controlling, and hitting a soft shot versus him is usually a reliable tactic. That serves as a pretty harsh restriction on his upside.

The American has made a number of dramatic, unexpected advancements throughout his career. 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 top 10. The previous season, he unexpectedly exploded up to No 4 – and maintained the spot. But the subsequent step, competing against and beating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and even a aging Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could the commentator thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate commenting on the ongoing slump of American men winning major titles when he had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just too much and the appreciation for the difficulty of the challenge insufficient.

Taylor Fritz achieved a career-best advancement to the Wimbledon semi-finals in July.

Fritz’s performance in that exact quarter-final should have been enough of an indication. Djokovic won in four rounds, a victory that only seemed uncertain for brief periods towards the conclusion, when the American had survived a couple match points and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The pair looked evenly matched during the exchanges, with the American creating numerous chances to break. But Djokovic rescued service break opportunity after break point, extending the streak to the brink of frustration. When he finally did convert one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly played a horrendous service game to lose his own serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle secondary to the main contest and compelled him to use far too much energy to win it. Facing set points in the last game, his first serve sailed to heaven. He extended the match twice on his backup delivery, but ultimately double-faulted. It was not a choke, I didn’t think, only a consequence of needing to hit too many second serves.

The contest was quite compelling proof that the American is not good enough to beat any version of Djokovic, that was defeated by the Spaniard in the following match and did not especially seem like he thought he could win. This is perfectly acceptable – the Serbian is the best player ever, and may not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has acquired enough knowledge and strategic intelligence to compensate for a significant portion of the decline. The issue is those who were expecting Fritz to win, and pressuring him to do so, when he was had not done anything that indicated he would.

The American is an valuable contributor to the tour regardless. He’s a patient, reflective voice in press conferences, exceeding virtually anyone on the ATP except for Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not just say how he feels or the tactic he believed determined a match, but explain it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the responsibility for America failing to produce a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist seems unjust. (Since Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the standings, perhaps they can divide that load.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

American legend Group

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• 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 dwell on it indefinitely if I don’t accomplish it,” Fritz told a journalist in the summer of winning a major. I hope he understands that he’s not a failure if he does not achieve that goal, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying empire is in fact highly unlikely for everybody else. {