🔗 Share this article

I have a few opinions about the comments delivered by ESPN broadcaster Chris Fowler after the Serbian champion's win over the American player in the US Open quarter-finals. Look – the athlete represents the United States, Fowler is from the US – and athletic competitions frequently lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. Some letdown would have been understandable. Instead, Fowler invoked the ongoing absence of American men at the majors: none of them has won a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the tournament.

We all love a narrative, me too. But come on. Even if Fritz had beaten Djokovic for the first time, force of nature the Spanish star was looming in the next round, whom Fritz has yet to beat in an official match. And had he someway 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 previous seven major titles (plus Alcaraz went on to thrash a fatigued Serbian in the next round). He said in press following his defeat that he in fact preferred his path, because it offered the chance to defeat the top three competitors in the sport in succession. He is more than justified to aim for the achievement; an athlete is supposed to have faith in themselves. But going into that Serbian last eight match what other person sensibly had the drought of US winners in mind?

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

Fritz, 28, is placed fourth in the global rankings entering this week’s year-end championships and has secured his last six matches over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. Presumably he might take that spot for himself in the future. But evidently that right now, that is as far as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a chasm of ranking points away. His elite serve and powerful power on each forehand and backhand are more than adequate to defeat the majority of opponents on the professional circuit. Against the select few generational talents, however, he is frequently overmatched. The last several seasons has witnessed the curious rise of lanky, towering players who can nonetheless move around with the surprising speed and fluidity of smaller players. He is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His movement is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he seldom steal a point that the opponent was dictating, and hitting a soft shot versus him is usually a safe bet. That serves as a quite severe limitation on his potential.

The American has made a number of significant, unexpected improvements throughout his career. Early on of the ten-year period, he was hovering around the lower end of the world's best thirty. Two years after, he was sniffing the top 10. The previous season, he unexpectedly exploded up to fourth place – and held the spot. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, the Italian, and including a aging Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the ongoing drought of American men lifting major titles when Fritz had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just too much and the appreciation for the difficulty of the challenge too little.

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

Fritz’s play in that exact quarter-final ought to have been enough of an sign. The Serbian won in four rounds, a victory that only felt uncertain for brief periods towards the very end, when the American had survived a couple match points and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo appeared well-balanced during the rallies, with the American creating numerous opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But the champion rescued break point after break point, extending the streak to the brink of agony. When he eventually did convert one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately played a terrible game to drop serve once more; the Serbian had drawn him into a skirmish peripheral to the real battle and compelled him to use excessive energy to win it. Down match points in the final game, Fritz’s first serve sailed to heaven. He extended the match twice on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It was not a collapse, in my opinion, only a consequence of needing to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The contest was quite ironclad evidence that Fritz is not good enough to beat any form of the Serbian, that lost to the Spaniard in the following match and did not particularly seem like he thought he could triumph. This is absolutely fine – the Serbian is the best player ever, and may not be at the height of his physical powers anymore, but has developed enough knowledge and tactical know-how to make up for quite a bit of the decline. The problem is those who were anticipating Fritz to win, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was had not done anything that suggested he would.

The American is an valuable contributor to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, reflective presence in media sessions, exceeding virtually everyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, willing to not just say how he feels or the tactic he believed determined a contest, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the blame for America failing to spawn a male major champion since Andy Roddick feels unfair. (Now that the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, maybe they can share that load.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

American legend Group

• The Spanish phenom
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Division

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

“I’d probably think about it indefinitely if I don’t accomplish it,” the American informed a journalist in June of claiming a major. It is hoped he understands that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t achieve that objective, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying reign is in fact highly improbable for all other players. {