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I possess some opinions regarding the comments delivered by ESPN broadcaster a well-known announcer following the Serbian champion's victory over the American player during the US Open last eight. Look – Fritz is the United States, the commentator is American – and sports frequently lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. A little bit of disappointment was appropriate. Rather, he invoked the continued drought of American men at grand slam tournaments: none of them has won a title since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the tournament.

We all love a storyline, myself included. But come on. Even if Fritz defeated Djokovic for the first time, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the following match, who Fritz has never defeated in an official match. And had he somehow gotten past that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, against whom Fritz had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the previous seven major titles (and Alcaraz went on to defeat a fatigued Djokovic in the subsequent match). Fritz stated in press following his defeat that he in fact preferred his path, because it offered the chance to defeat the three best players in the world back-to-back. He is more than within his right to aim for the accomplishment; an athlete is supposed to have faith in themselves. But going into that Djokovic last eight match who else sensibly had the drought of US winners in mind?

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

The American, 28, is ranked fourth in the global rankings entering this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his last six encounters over No 3 Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. Presumably he might claim that position for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that right now, that’s as high as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard sit a chasm of performance metrics away. His top-class delivery and concussive strength on each forehand and backhand are sufficiently adequate to dispose of the majority of rivals on the ATP tour. Against the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, though, he is often overmatched. The past few seasons has witnessed the interesting emergence of lanky, towering athletes who can nonetheless move around with the surprising speed and grace of smaller men. Fritz is six-foot-five and looks it. His footwork is rigid, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he’ll rarely win a rally that the opponent was controlling, and hitting a drop shot versus him is usually a safe bet. That acts as a pretty harsh limitation on his upside.

The American has achieved a several dramatic, improbable advancements throughout his career. At the beginning of the decade, he was circling the bottom of the world's best thirty. 24 months later, he was approaching the elite ten. Last year, he unexpectedly exploded to No 4 – and held the position. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and beating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and including a aging Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could the commentator thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the ongoing drought of American men lifting major titles when he had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just too much and the respect for the magnitude of the challenge insufficient.

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

The American's performance in that very quarter-final should have been enough of an sign. Djokovic triumphed in four rounds, a victory that only seemed uncertain for brief periods towards the conclusion, when the American had saved a few championship opportunities and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The pair looked well-balanced during the rallies, with Fritz creating numerous opportunities to break. But the champion saved break point after break point, extending the streak to the brink of frustration. When Fritz finally did claim one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately produced a horrendous service game to drop serve again; the Serbian had drawn him into a skirmish secondary to the real battle and compelled him to use far too much energy to win it. Facing match points in the final game, Fritz’s primary delivery sailed to heaven. He prolonged the contest twice on his backup delivery, but ultimately committed two errors. It was not a choke, I didn’t think, just a consequence of needing to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The contest was quite ironclad proof that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any form of Djokovic, that lost to Alcaraz in the next round and never especially seem like he believed he could triumph. This is absolutely acceptable – Djokovic is the best player ever, and may not be at the height of his athletic abilities anymore, but has acquired sufficient experience and tactical know-how to make up for quite a bit of the drop-off. The issue is the individuals who were anticipating Fritz to win, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was had not done anything that suggested he would.

Fritz is an asset to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in media sessions, exceeding virtually anyone on the men's tour aside from the Russian star, prepared to not just say his emotions or the strategy he believed determined a contest, but explain it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the blame for America failing to spawn a male major champion since Andy Roddick feels unjust. (Now that the fellow American is competing alongside him in the standings, maybe they can divide that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Group

• The Spanish phenom
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Swedish icon Division

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• The rising American
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably dwell on it forever if I don’t accomplish it,” Fritz told a journalist in June of winning a grand slam. It is hoped he understands that he’s not a failure if he does not fulfill that goal, that breaking through Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable empire is in fact extremely unlikely for everybody else. {