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I have a few thoughts about the remarks delivered by the sports network broadcaster a well-known announcer after Novak Djokovic's win over the American player during the New York major quarter-finals. Look – the athlete represents the United States, the commentator is American – and sports frequently lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. Some disappointment would have been appropriate. Instead, he brought up the continued drought of American men at the majors: none of them had lifted a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the competition.

Everyone enjoy a narrative, myself included. But come on. Even if Fritz had beaten the legend for the initial occasion, force of nature the Spanish star was waiting in the next round, whom Fritz has never defeated in an official match. And had he 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 divided the last seven major titles (and Alcaraz proceeded to thrash a fatigued Djokovic in the subsequent match). He said in post-match interviews following his defeat that he actually preferred his path, because it presented the chance to defeat the top three players in the world in succession. He is well justified to aspire to the accomplishment; an competitor is supposed to have faith in themselves. But going into that Serbian quarter-final who else sensibly had the lack of American champions on the brain?

The American star's second serve the only thing between her and sustained success

Fritz, 28, is placed fourth in the world entering this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has won his last six encounters over third-ranked the German with increasing ease. Presumably he might take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that’s as far as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a chasm of performance metrics away. Fritz’s top-class delivery and concussive power on each forehand and reverse side are sufficiently adequate to dispose of the majority of opponents on the ATP tour. Against the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, however, he is frequently overmatched. The last several seasons has seen the curious rise of tall, gangly athletes who can nevertheless cover the court with the surprising speed and grace of much shorter men. He is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His movement is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the other player was controlling, and playing a drop shot versus him is usually a reliable tactic. That acts as a pretty harsh limitation on his upside.

Fritz has achieved a several dramatic, improbable improvements throughout his career. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was hovering around the lower end of the world's best thirty. 24 months later, he was sniffing the elite ten. Last year, he unexpectedly exploded up to No 4 – and held the spot. But the next leap, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and even a declining Djokovic, is the highest of all. What was the commentator thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the continuing drought of American men lifting grand slams 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 task insufficient.

Taylor Fritz achieved a career-best run to the Wimbledon semi-finals in the summer.

The American's performance in that very last eight match should have been sufficient of an sign. The Serbian won in four sets, a win that only seemed tenuous for moments towards the conclusion, when Fritz had saved a few match points and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair looked evenly matched during the exchanges, with the American creating numerous opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic saved break point after service break opportunity, extending the streak to the brink of frustration. When Fritz eventually did claim a single of the chances at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately produced a horrendous game to lose his own serve again; Djokovic had drawn him into a battle peripheral to the main contest and forced him to expend excessive energy to prevail. Facing set points in the final game, Fritz’s primary delivery floated to heaven. He prolonged the match twice on his second serve, but finally double-faulted. It wasn’t a choke, I didn’t think, only a consequence of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The contest was quite compelling evidence that the American is insufficiently skilled to beat any version of the Serbian, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the next round and never particularly appeared like he believed he could win. This is perfectly acceptable – Djokovic is the best player ever, and might not be at the peak of his physical powers anymore, but has acquired sufficient knowledge and strategic intelligence to compensate for quite a bit of the drop-off. The problem is those who were expecting the American to win, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was had not accomplished anything that suggested he would.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the tour nonetheless. He’s a calm, reflective voice in press conferences, exceeding almost everyone on the men's tour except for Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not just express how he feels or the tactic he believed decided a match, but clarify it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the responsibility for the United States not spawn 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 burden.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

American legend Group

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

Swedish icon Division

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• The rising American
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely think about it indefinitely if I don’t do it,” the American told a journalist in the summer of winning a major. I hope he realizes that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t fulfill that goal, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying reign is in fact extremely unlikely for everybody else. {