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I possess a few thoughts regarding the remarks delivered by the sports network broadcaster a well-known announcer following Novak Djokovic's win over the American player in the US Open last eight. Consider – Fritz is American, Fowler is from the US – and sports often lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. Some letdown would have been understandable. Instead, he brought up the continued absence of American men at grand slam tournaments: not one of them had lifted a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the final representative in the tournament.

We all love a storyline, me too. But come on. Suppose the American defeated the legend for the first time, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was waiting in the next round, whom he has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And if he’d somehow survived that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, against whom the American had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also divided the previous seven major titles (plus the Spaniard went on to thrash a tired Serbian in the subsequent match). He said in press after the loss that he actually liked his path, because it presented the opportunity to beat the three best players in the world in succession. He is well within his right to aspire to the accomplishment; an athlete is meant to have faith in themselves. But going into that Djokovic quarter-final what other person sensibly had the drought of US winners in mind?

The American star's second serve the sole barrier between her and sustained success

Fritz, 28, is ranked fourth in the world starting this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has won his previous six encounters over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. Presumably he could claim that position for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that’s as far as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a chasm of performance metrics away. His top-class delivery and concussive power on both front side and backhand are more than adequate to dispose of the majority of rivals on the professional circuit. When facing the select few generational talents, however, Fritz is often helpless. The last several years has seen the curious emergence of lanky, towering players who can nonetheless cover the court with the surprising speed and fluidity of smaller men. He is six-foot-five and appears that way. His movement is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he’ll rarely win a rally that the other player was dictating, and hitting a drop shot against him is typically a safe bet. That acts as a pretty harsh limitation on his upside.

The American has achieved a several dramatic, improbable advancements over the years. Early on of the decade, he was hovering around the lower end of the top 30. Two years later, he was sniffing the elite ten. The previous season, he suddenly surged up to fourth place – and maintained the spot. But the next leap, mixing it up with and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and even a aging Serbian, 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 appropriate commenting on the continuing drought of US male players lifting grand slams when he had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just excessive and the respect for the magnitude of the task insufficient.

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

The American's performance in that exact last eight match ought to have been sufficient of an indication. The Serbian won in four rounds, a win that only seemed tenuous for moments towards the very end, when the American had survived a few match points and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The pair looked well-balanced during the rallies, with Fritz earning plenty of chances to break. But Djokovic saved service break opportunity after break point, prolonging the streak to the brink of frustration. When he finally did convert a single of the chances at 5-5 in the second set, he promptly produced a horrendous game to drop serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle secondary to the main contest and forced him to use excessive effort to prevail. Down set points in the final game, Fritz’s first serve floated to heaven. He extended the match twice on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It wasn’t a collapse, I didn’t think, just a result of having to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The contest was quite compelling proof that Fritz is not good enough to beat any form of Djokovic, that was defeated by the Spaniard in the next round and never especially appeared like he thought he could triumph. This is perfectly fine – Djokovic is the best player ever, and may not be at the height of his athletic abilities now, but has developed enough experience and tactical know-how to make up for quite a bit of the drop-off. The problem is the individuals who were anticipating Fritz to prevail, and pressuring him to do so, when he was yet to accomplished anything that suggested he could.

Fritz is an asset to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a calm, reflective voice in media sessions, more so than almost anyone on the men's tour aside from Daniil Medvedev, willing to not only say how he feels or the strategy he felt determined a match, but explain it. That he should shoulder the majority of the responsibility for the United States not spawn a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist feels unjust. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the standings, maybe they can share that load.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Group

• The Spanish phenom
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• The Italian stylist

Swedish icon Division

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• The rising American
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely dwell on it forever if I don’t do it,” the American told a journalist in the summer of winning a grand slam. I hope he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t achieve that goal, that breaking through Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying reign is in fact extremely unlikely for all other players. {