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I possess some opinions about the comments made by ESPN broadcaster Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's victory over the American player during the New York major quarter-finals. Look – the athlete represents American, the commentator is American – and sports often lend themselves to nationalism. A little bit of letdown was understandable. Instead, he brought up the continued drought of American men at grand slam tournaments: not one of them has won a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the tournament.

We all enjoy a narrative, me too. But really. Suppose the American had beaten Djokovic for the first time, force of nature the Spanish star was looming in the next round, who he has never defeated in an official match. And had he somehow survived that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, against whom Fritz had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. The two young stars had also divided the last seven grand slams (and Alcaraz proceeded to defeat a tired Serbian in the next round). He stated in press after the loss that he actually preferred his path, because it offered the opportunity to defeat the top three competitors in the sport back-to-back. He is more than justified to aim for the achievement; an athlete is meant to have faith in themselves. But going into that Serbian last eight match what other person in their right mind had the lack of American champions on the brain?

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

Fritz, twenty-eight, is placed fourth in the world entering the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has won his last six encounters over No 3 the German with increasing ease. Presumably he could take that spot for himself in the coming years. But evidently that right now, that’s as far as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard sit a vast gap of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class delivery and powerful strength on both forehand and backhand are more than adequate to defeat the majority of rivals on the ATP tour. Against the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, though, he is frequently helpless. The last several years has seen the curious rise of tall, gangly athletes who can nonetheless cover the court with the surprising speed and fluidity of much shorter players. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His footwork is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he’ll rarely win a rally that the other player was dictating, and playing a soft shot against him is usually a safe bet. That serves as a pretty severe restriction on his upside.

Fritz has achieved a number of dramatic, improbable advancements throughout his career. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was hovering around the bottom of the world's best thirty. Two years later, he was sniffing the top 10. Last year, he suddenly surged up to fourth place – and held the position. But the next leap, mixing it up with and beating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and even a aging Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the continuing drought of American men winning major titles 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 insufficient.

Taylor Fritz achieved a career-best advancement to the All England Club semi-finals in July.

The American's performance in that very quarter-final ought to have been enough of an indication. The Serbian triumphed in four sets, a victory that only felt uncertain for brief periods towards the very end, when the American had saved a couple match points and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared evenly matched during the rallies, with the American creating numerous opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued break point after service break opportunity, prolonging the run to the point of frustration. When Fritz eventually did convert one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately produced a terrible service game to lose his own serve again; the Serbian had drawn him into a battle peripheral to the main contest and compelled him to use excessive energy to prevail. Facing set points in the final game, his first serve sailed to the sky. He prolonged the match twice on his backup delivery, but finally double-faulted. It wasn’t a collapse, I didn’t think, only a result of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The match was quite compelling proof that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any form of the Serbian, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the following match and never particularly seem like he thought he could win. This is perfectly fine – the Serbian is the best player ever, and might not be at the height of his athletic abilities now, but has acquired sufficient knowledge and tactical know-how to compensate for quite a bit of the drop-off. The issue is the individuals who were expecting the American to win, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was yet to accomplished anything that indicated he could.

The American is an valuable contributor to the tour nonetheless. He’s a calm, thoughtful voice in press conferences, more so than almost anyone on the men's tour except for the Russian star, willing to not only express how he feels or the strategy he felt determined a match, but explain it. That he should shoulder the majority of the responsibility for America not produce a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist seems unfair. (Now that the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, perhaps they can share that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

American legend Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Group

• The Italian champion
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably think about it forever if I don’t do it,” Fritz informed an interviewer in the summer of winning a major. I hope he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t achieve that objective, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable reign is actually highly improbable for all other players. {