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I have some opinions regarding that comments made by ESPN commentator Chris Fowler after Novak Djokovic's victory over Taylor Fritz during the New York major quarter-finals. Look – the athlete represents the United States, Fowler is from the US – and sports often encourage patriotic sentiment. Some disappointment would have been understandable. Rather, Fowler invoked the continued absence of American men at grand slam tournaments: not one of them had lifted a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the final representative in the tournament.

We all enjoy a storyline, me too. But really. Suppose the American defeated Djokovic for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was looming in the following match, whom Fritz has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And if he’d someway gotten past that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, against whom Fritz had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the previous seven grand slams (and the Spaniard went on to defeat a fatigued Serbian in the subsequent match). He stated in post-match interviews following his defeat that he in fact preferred his draw, because it presented the chance to defeat the three best competitors in the world in succession. He is well justified to aim for the achievement; an athlete is meant to believe in themselves. But going into that Djokovic quarter-final who else in their right mind had the lack of American champions in mind?

The American star's second serve the only thing standing in her way and consistent victories

Fritz, twenty-eight, is placed number four in the global rankings entering this week’s year-end championships and has secured his previous six encounters over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. Presumably he could take that spot for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that right now, that is as high as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a vast gap of performance metrics away. His top-class delivery and powerful power on each forehand and reverse side are sufficiently enough to dispose of the majority of rivals on the ATP tour. When facing the select few generational talents, though, Fritz is frequently overmatched. The past few seasons has seen the curious rise of lanky, towering players who can nevertheless move around with the surprising quickness and fluidity of much shorter players. He is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His movement is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he’ll rarely win a rally that the other player was dictating, and playing a soft shot against him is typically a safe bet. That serves as a quite severe restriction on his upside.

The American has achieved a number of dramatic, improbable advancements throughout his career. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was circling the lower end of the top 30. Two years later, he was approaching the elite ten. Last year, he suddenly exploded up to No 4 – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and beating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, the Italian, and even a aging Djokovic, is the highest of all. What was the commentator thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the continuing drought of US male players lifting major titles when Fritz had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply excessive and the respect for the difficulty of the task insufficient.

The American star achieved a personal best advancement to the All England Club last four in the summer.

Fritz’s performance in that exact quarter-final should have been sufficient of an sign. The Serbian won in four rounds, a win that only felt tenuous for brief periods towards the conclusion, when Fritz had saved a couple championship opportunities and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The pair appeared evenly matched during the rallies, with the American earning plenty of chances to win the opponent's serve. But the champion rescued service break opportunity after service break opportunity, extending the streak to the point of frustration. When he eventually did claim one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately produced a terrible game to drop serve again; the Serbian had lulled him into a skirmish secondary to the real battle and compelled him to use far too much effort to prevail. Down match points in the last game, Fritz’s first serve sailed to heaven. He prolonged the contest two times on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It was not a choke, in my opinion, just a result of having to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The contest was fairly compelling evidence that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to defeat any form of Djokovic, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the following match and did not especially seem like he believed he could win. This is absolutely fine – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the height of his physical powers now, but has developed enough knowledge and tactical know-how to make up for a significant portion of the decline. The issue is those who were expecting Fritz to prevail, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was yet to accomplished anything that indicated he would.

The American is an asset to the tour regardless. He’s a patient, reflective voice in press conferences, more so than almost anyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, prepared to not just express his emotions or the strategy he believed decided a match, but explain it. That he ought to shoulder the majority of the responsibility for America failing to spawn a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick feels unjust. (Now that Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the standings, maybe they can divide that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

American legend Group

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

Bjorn Borg Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably dwell on it indefinitely if I don’t do it,” the American told an interviewer in the summer of claiming a grand slam. I hope he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not achieve that objective, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable empire is in fact extremely unlikely for everybody else. {