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I have some opinions about the remarks made by ESPN commentator Chris Fowler after the Serbian champion's victory over Taylor Fritz in the New York major last eight. Look – Fritz is the United States, the commentator is from the US – and sports frequently encourage nationalism. A little bit of disappointment was appropriate. Rather, Fowler brought up the ongoing absence of US male players at grand slam tournaments: 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 love a narrative, myself included. But come on. Even if Fritz defeated the legend for the first time, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was looming in the next round, who he has yet to beat in an official match. And if he’d someway survived that, it would have been title holder the Italian, against whom the American had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the last seven grand slams (and Alcaraz proceeded to thrash a fatigued Djokovic in the next round). Fritz stated in press after the loss that he in fact liked his draw, because it presented the opportunity to beat the top three competitors in the world back-to-back. He is more than within his right to aim for the accomplishment; an competitor is meant to believe in themselves. But going into that Serbian quarter-final what other person in their right mind had the drought of American champions in mind?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the sole barrier standing in her way and consistent victories

The American, 28, is placed fourth in the world entering the upcoming year-end championships and has secured his previous six encounters over No 3 the German with increasing ease. It's likely he might take that spot for himself in the coming years. But evidently that right now, that’s as far as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a chasm of performance metrics away. His elite delivery and concussive power on both forehand and reverse side are more than enough to defeat the majority of opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, though, Fritz is often helpless. The past few seasons has seen the curious emergence of lanky, towering athletes who can nonetheless cover the court with the alarming quickness and grace of smaller men. He is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His movement is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he seldom win a rally that the opponent was dictating, and hitting a soft shot against him is typically a reliable tactic. That serves as a quite severe restriction on his potential.

Fritz has made a several significant, unexpected advancements throughout his career. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was hovering around the bottom of the world's best thirty. 24 months after, he was approaching the top 10. The previous season, he unexpectedly surged up to No 4 – and held the spot. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating legendary figures like Alcaraz, the Italian, and even a declining Serbian, is the highest of all. What was the commentator have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate commenting on the continuing slump of US male players lifting major titles when Fritz had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just too much and the appreciation for the difficulty of the task too little.

The American star made a personal best advancement to the Wimbledon last four in July.

The American's play in that exact quarter-final ought to have been enough of an sign. The Serbian won in four rounds, a win that only felt tenuous for moments towards the very end, when the American had survived a few match points and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The duo looked well-balanced during the exchanges, with the American creating plenty of chances to break. But the champion saved service break opportunity after break point, extending the streak to the point of agony. When he finally did claim a single of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly played a terrible game to lose his own serve once more; Djokovic had drawn him into a battle secondary to the main contest and forced him to use far too much effort to prevail. Facing set points in the final game, his first serve sailed to heaven. He prolonged the contest two times on his second serve, but finally double-faulted. It wasn’t a choke, in my opinion, only a result of having to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The match was fairly ironclad proof that Fritz is not good enough to beat any form of Djokovic, that lost to the Spaniard in the next round and did not especially appeared like he believed he could triumph. This is absolutely fine – the Serbian is the best player ever, and may not be at the height of his athletic abilities now, but has acquired enough knowledge and strategic intelligence to compensate for quite a bit of the decline. The problem is the individuals who were expecting the American to win, and pressuring him to do so, when he was had not done anything that indicated he could.

The American is an valuable contributor to the tour regardless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in press conferences, more so than almost everyone on the men's tour aside from Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not just express his emotions or the tactic he believed decided a match, but explain it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for America failing to produce a male major champion since Andy Roddick seems unfair. (Now that Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the rankings, perhaps they can divide that load.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Group

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

Bjorn Borg Group

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely think about it indefinitely if I don’t do it,” the American informed a journalist in June of claiming a grand slam. I hope he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not fulfill that objective, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable reign is in fact highly improbable for all other players. {