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I possess some opinions about the comments delivered by the sports network commentator a well-known announcer after the Serbian champion's win over the American player during the US Open quarter-finals. Look – Fritz is the United States, Fowler is American – and athletic competitions often encourage patriotic sentiment. A little bit of letdown would have been appropriate. Rather, Fowler invoked the ongoing absence of American men at the majors: none of them had lifted a title since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the competition.

Everyone enjoy a narrative, myself included. But come on. Suppose Fritz had beaten the legend for the initial occasion, force of nature the Spanish star was looming in the next round, whom he has yet to beat in an official match. And had he someway survived that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, against whom the American had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the previous seven major titles (and the Spaniard proceeded to thrash a fatigued Djokovic in the next round). He stated in press following his defeat that he actually preferred his draw, because it presented the chance to defeat the top three competitors in the sport back-to-back. He is more than justified to aspire to the achievement; an competitor is supposed to have faith in themselves. But entering that Djokovic quarter-final who else in their right mind had the drought of American champions on the brain?

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

Fritz, 28, is placed number four in the world entering the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has won his previous six matches over No 3 Alexander Zverev 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 rise: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a chasm of ranking points away. His elite delivery and powerful power on both front side and backhand are more than adequate to dispose of most rivals on the ATP tour. When facing the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, however, Fritz is often overmatched. The last several years has seen the curious emergence of tall, gangly players who can nevertheless cover the court with the surprising quickness and fluidity of much shorter men. He is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His movement is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he seldom steal a point that the opponent was controlling, and hitting a soft shot against him is usually a safe bet. That serves as a quite severe restriction on his upside.

Fritz has achieved a number of dramatic, improbable improvements over the years. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. Two years later, he was sniffing the elite ten. The previous season, he suddenly exploded to fourth place – and held the position. But the next leap, competing against and beating legendary figures like Alcaraz, the Italian, and even a declining Serbian, is the highest of all. What was Fowler thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the ongoing slump of American men lifting major titles when Fritz had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the task too little.

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

The American's performance in that exact last eight match ought to have been sufficient of an sign. The Serbian triumphed in four rounds, a win that only felt tenuous for moments towards the very end, when the American had saved a few championship opportunities and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the exchanges, with the American creating numerous opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued service break opportunity after break point, prolonging the run to the point of frustration. When Fritz eventually did convert a single of the chances at 5-5 in the second set, he promptly played a horrendous game to drop serve once more; the Serbian had drawn him into a skirmish peripheral to the real battle and forced him to expend excessive energy to prevail. Facing match points in the last game, Fritz’s primary delivery floated to heaven. He prolonged the contest twice on his backup delivery, but finally committed two errors. It wasn’t a collapse, I didn’t think, just a result of needing to hit too many second serves.

The match was fairly ironclad evidence that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any form of the Serbian, who lost to the Spaniard in the following match and never especially appeared like he thought he could triumph. This is perfectly fine – the Serbian is the best player ever, and might not be at the height of his physical powers anymore, but has developed enough knowledge and strategic intelligence to make up for a significant portion of the decline. The problem is those who were expecting the American to win, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was yet to done anything that indicated he would.

The American is an asset to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a calm, reflective voice in media sessions, more so than almost everyone on the ATP aside from Daniil Medvedev, willing to not just express his emotions or the strategy he felt determined a match, but explain it. That he should shoulder the majority of the responsibility for America failing to spawn a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist seems unjust. (Since Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, perhaps they can share that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Division

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I’d probably think about it forever if I fail to accomplish it,” the American informed an interviewer in the summer of claiming a grand slam. I hope he realizes that he’s not a failure if he does not fulfill that goal, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying reign is actually extremely unlikely for all other players. {