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I have a few opinions regarding that comments made by the sports network broadcaster Chris Fowler following Novak Djokovic's win over Taylor Fritz during the New York major last eight. Consider – the athlete represents the United States, Fowler is from the US – and sports frequently lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. Some letdown would have been understandable. Rather, Fowler invoked the ongoing drought of American men at the majors: not one of them has won a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the tournament.

Everyone enjoy a storyline, myself included. But really. Even if Fritz had beaten the legend for the first time, 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 survived that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, against whom the American had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also split the last seven major titles (and Alcaraz proceeded to defeat a tired Djokovic in the next round). Fritz said in post-match interviews following his defeat that he actually liked his path, because it presented the opportunity to beat the three best competitors in the sport in succession. Fritz is well justified to aim for the accomplishment; an competitor is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Serbian last eight match who else in their right mind had the lack of US winners in mind?

The American star's second serve the only thing between her and consistent victories

Fritz, twenty-eight, is ranked fourth in the world starting the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has won his last six encounters over No 3 the German with growing comfort. Presumably he might claim that position for himself in the coming years. But evidently that at present, that’s as high as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a chasm of ranking points away. His elite serve and powerful strength on both forehand and reverse side are more than adequate to defeat most opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, though, he is often overmatched. The past few years has seen the curious rise of lanky, towering athletes who can nevertheless cover the court with the surprising quickness and grace of much shorter players. He is six-foot-five and appears that way. His footwork is rigid, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the other player was controlling, and hitting a drop shot against him is typically a safe bet. That acts as a pretty harsh limitation on his upside.

The American has made a several dramatic, unexpected improvements over the years. At the beginning of the decade, he was circling the lower end of the top 30. Two years after, he was sniffing the elite ten. The previous season, he suddenly exploded up to fourth place – and maintained the position. But the next leap, competing against and beating legendary figures like Alcaraz, the Italian, and even a aging Djokovic, is the highest of all. What could Fowler thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the ongoing drought of US male players winning grand slams when he had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just too much and the appreciation for the difficulty of the task insufficient.

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

The American's play in that very last eight match ought to have been enough of an sign. The Serbian won in four rounds, a win that only felt tenuous for brief periods towards the very end, when Fritz had saved a few match points and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the rallies, with the American earning numerous opportunities to break. But the champion saved break point after service break opportunity, prolonging the streak to the brink of agony. When Fritz finally did claim a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately played a terrible game to lose his own serve again; the Serbian had lulled him into a battle secondary to the real battle and forced him to expend excessive effort to prevail. Down set points in the final game, his primary delivery floated to heaven. He extended the contest twice on his backup delivery, but ultimately committed two errors. It was not a collapse, in my opinion, only a result of needing to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The contest was fairly compelling evidence that Fritz is not good enough to defeat any version of Djokovic, who lost to the Spaniard in the next round and did not particularly seem like he thought he could win. This is perfectly fine – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the peak of his athletic abilities now, but has acquired enough knowledge and strategic intelligence to make up for quite a bit of the drop-off. The problem is the individuals who were expecting Fritz to prevail, 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 tour regardless. He’s a calm, thoughtful voice in press conferences, exceeding virtually anyone 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 explain it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the blame for the United States not spawn a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick seems unfair. (Now that Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, maybe they can divide that load.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Group

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Bjorn Borg Division

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• The rising American
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely think about it indefinitely if I fail to do it,” Fritz informed an interviewer in the summer of claiming a major. It is hoped he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t achieve that goal, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying empire is in fact extremely unlikely for all other players. {