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I have some opinions regarding that remarks made by the sports network broadcaster a well-known announcer following the Serbian champion's victory over Taylor Fritz in the US Open last eight. Look – Fritz is American, the commentator is American – and athletic competitions often encourage patriotic sentiment. A little bit of disappointment would have been appropriate. Rather, Fowler brought up the ongoing absence of American men 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 tournament.

Everyone enjoy a narrative, me too. But really. Suppose the American had beaten the legend for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was looming in the next round, whom Fritz has never defeated in an official match. And had he somehow survived that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, versus him the American had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also split the previous seven grand slams (plus Alcaraz proceeded to thrash a fatigued Djokovic in the next round). Fritz stated in press following his defeat that he in fact liked his draw, because it presented the opportunity to defeat the three best players in the world back-to-back. Fritz is more than justified to aspire to the accomplishment; an athlete is supposed to have faith in themselves. But going into that Djokovic quarter-final what other person sensibly had the drought of US winners on the brain?

The American star's weaker delivery the sole barrier standing in her way and sustained success

The American, twenty-eight, is ranked fourth in the global rankings entering this week’s year-end championships and has secured his previous six encounters over No 3 Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. Presumably he might take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that is as high as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard lie a vast gap of ranking points away. His top-class serve and concussive power on each forehand and backhand are more than adequate to defeat most rivals on the professional circuit. When facing the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, though, Fritz is frequently overmatched. The last several seasons has witnessed the curious rise of lanky, towering players who can nonetheless move around with the alarming speed and grace of much shorter men. He is six-foot-five and looks it. His footwork is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. 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 harsh restriction on his upside.

The American has made a number of significant, improbable improvements throughout his career. At the beginning of the decade, he was hovering around the lower end of the world's best thirty. Two years after, he was sniffing the elite ten. Last year, he unexpectedly surged to fourth place – and maintained the position. But the next leap, competing against and beating legendary figures like Alcaraz, Sinner, and including a aging Serbian, is the highest of all. What could Fowler thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the ongoing drought of American men winning major titles when he had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply too much and the appreciation for the magnitude of the challenge insufficient.

The American star achieved a career-best run to the All England Club last four in the summer.

Fritz’s play in that very last eight match should have been sufficient of an sign. Djokovic won in four rounds, a victory that only seemed uncertain for brief periods towards the conclusion, when Fritz had saved a few match points and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo looked well-balanced during the exchanges, with the American creating plenty of opportunities to break. But the champion rescued service break opportunity after break point, extending the streak to the brink of agony. When Fritz finally did claim a single of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately played a terrible game to lose his own serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a skirmish peripheral to the main contest and forced him to expend excessive energy to win it. Down match points in the last game, his first serve floated to the sky. He prolonged the match twice on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It wasn’t a choke, I didn’t think, just a consequence of having to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The match was quite compelling evidence that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any form of the Serbian, that lost to the Spaniard in the next round and never particularly seem like he thought he could triumph. This is absolutely acceptable – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has developed sufficient knowledge and strategic intelligence to make up for quite a bit of the drop-off. The issue is those who were anticipating the American to win, and pressuring him to do so, when he was had not done anything that indicated he could.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the circuit regardless. He’s a patient, reflective presence in press conferences, exceeding virtually everyone on the ATP aside from Daniil Medvedev, willing to not only say how he feels or the tactic he believed decided a match, but explain it. That he ought to shoulder the majority of the responsibility for America not spawn a male major champion since the last American titlist feels unjust. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the standings, maybe they can share that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Division

• The Spanish phenom
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Group

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

“I would likely think about it indefinitely if I fail to accomplish it,” the American told a journalist in the summer of claiming a grand slam. I hope he understands that he’s not a failure if he does not achieve that goal, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable reign is in fact extremely improbable for everybody else. {