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I have a few thoughts about the remarks made by ESPN broadcaster a well-known announcer after Novak Djokovic's win over the American player during the New York major quarter-finals. Look – Fritz is American, the commentator is American – and sports frequently encourage nationalism. Some disappointment would have been appropriate. Rather, he brought up the ongoing absence of US male players at the majors: none of them had lifted a title since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the final representative in the competition.

We all love a narrative, me too. But really. Suppose Fritz defeated the legend for the initial occasion, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the next round, whom he has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And had he somehow gotten past that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the last seven grand slams (and the Spaniard went on to defeat a fatigued Serbian in the next round). He said in post-match interviews after the loss that he in fact liked his draw, because it presented the chance to defeat the three best competitors in the world back-to-back. He is well within his right to aim for the achievement; an competitor is meant to have faith in themselves. But going into that Serbian quarter-final what other person sensibly had the drought of American champions on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s weaker delivery the sole barrier between her and consistent victories

The American, twenty-eight, is placed fourth in the global rankings starting the upcoming year-end championships and has won his last six encounters over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. It's likely he might claim that position for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that right now, that’s as high as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a vast gap of performance metrics away. Fritz’s elite serve and concussive power on both forehand and backhand are more than enough to dispose of the majority of rivals on the professional circuit. When facing the handful of generational talents, however, Fritz is often overmatched. The last several years has seen the curious emergence of tall, gangly athletes who can nevertheless move around with the alarming quickness and grace of smaller players. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His footwork is rigid, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he seldom steal a point that the other player was controlling, and hitting a drop shot versus him is usually a reliable tactic. That acts as a pretty severe restriction on his upside.

The American has made a number of significant, improbable improvements over the years. Early on of the ten-year period, he was hovering around the lower end of the top 30. Two years after, he was approaching the elite ten. The previous season, he suddenly surged up to fourth place – and held the position. But the next leap, competing against and defeating legendary figures like Alcaraz, Sinner, and even a aging Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate commenting on the continuing drought of American men winning major titles when Fritz had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the challenge insufficient.

Taylor Fritz made a career-best advancement to the Wimbledon semi-finals in the summer.

Fritz’s play in that very last eight match ought to have been enough of an indication. The Serbian won in four sets, a win that only seemed uncertain for brief periods towards the very end, when Fritz had saved a couple match points and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The duo looked evenly matched during the exchanges, with the American earning plenty of opportunities to break. But Djokovic rescued break point after break point, prolonging the streak to the point of frustration. When Fritz finally did claim a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately produced a terrible service game to lose his own serve once more; Djokovic had drawn him into a skirmish peripheral to the main contest and compelled him to expend excessive energy to prevail. Facing set points in the last game, his first serve sailed to the sky. He prolonged the match two times on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It wasn’t a choke, in my opinion, only a consequence of needing to hit too many second serves.

The match was fairly ironclad proof that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any version of the Serbian, that lost to the Spaniard in the next round and never particularly appeared like he believed he could win. This is perfectly acceptable – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the peak of his athletic abilities now, but has acquired sufficient experience and tactical know-how to make up for a significant portion of the drop-off. The issue is those who were anticipating the American to prevail, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was had not done anything that suggested he would.

The American is an valuable contributor to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a calm, reflective presence in press conferences, exceeding almost anyone on the men's tour aside from Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not just express his emotions or the strategy he believed decided a match, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for America failing to produce a male major champion since Andy Roddick feels unfair. (Since Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, perhaps they can divide that load.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Group

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• The rising American
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I’d probably dwell on it indefinitely if I fail to accomplish it,” Fritz informed an interviewer in June of winning a major. I hope he realizes that he’s not a failure if he does not fulfill that goal, that breaking through Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable reign is actually extremely improbable for all other players. {