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I possess some opinions about that comments made by ESPN commentator Chris Fowler after the Serbian champion's win over Taylor Fritz in the US Open last eight. Consider – Fritz is the United States, Fowler is American – and sports often encourage patriotic sentiment. A little bit of disappointment would have been understandable. Instead, Fowler brought up the continued drought of American men at the majors: not one of them had lifted a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the tournament.

Everyone enjoy a narrative, myself included. But really. Suppose the American had beaten Djokovic for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the next round, who he has yet to beat in an official match. And had he someway gotten past that, it would have been title holder the Italian, versus him the American had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the last seven grand slams (and the Spaniard proceeded to thrash a tired Serbian in the subsequent match). He said in post-match interviews following his defeat that he in fact liked his path, because it offered the chance to defeat the top three players in the sport in succession. Fritz is well within his right to aspire to the achievement; an competitor is supposed to have faith in themselves. But entering that Djokovic quarter-final what other person in their right mind had the lack of American champions on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the sole barrier standing in her way and sustained success

The American, 28, is ranked fourth in the world entering this week’s year-end championships and has secured his previous six encounters over third-ranked the German with increasing ease. Presumably he might claim that position for himself in the future. But evidently that at present, that is as high as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard lie a vast gap of performance metrics away. His elite serve and concussive power on both forehand and backhand are more than adequate to dispose of the majority of rivals on the professional circuit. When facing the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, though, Fritz is often overmatched. The past few years has witnessed the curious emergence of tall, gangly players who can nevertheless cover the court with the alarming quickness and fluidity of smaller players. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His footwork is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his legs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the other player was dictating, and playing a soft shot against him is typically a reliable tactic. That serves as a pretty harsh limitation on his upside.

Fritz has achieved a number of significant, unexpected improvements throughout his career. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was hovering around the bottom of the top 30. Two years later, he was sniffing the top 10. The previous season, he unexpectedly exploded up to No 4 – and held the position. But the next leap, mixing it up with and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and including a declining Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could the commentator thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the continuing drought of American men lifting major titles when he had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply too much and the respect for the magnitude of the task insufficient.

The American star made a career-best run to the Wimbledon last four in July.

The American's performance in that very quarter-final should have been enough of an indication. The Serbian won in four sets, a win that only felt tenuous for moments towards the very end, when the American had saved a few match points and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The duo appeared evenly matched during the exchanges, with the American earning plenty of opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic saved service break opportunity after service break opportunity, 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 promptly played a horrendous game to lose his own serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle peripheral to the main contest and compelled him to expend far too much energy to win it. Facing set points in the last game, Fritz’s primary delivery floated to the sky. He prolonged the contest twice on his second serve, but ultimately committed two errors. It was not a collapse, in my opinion, only a consequence of needing to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The contest was quite compelling proof that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to beat any form of Djokovic, that was defeated by Alcaraz in the next round and never particularly seem like he thought he could win. This is perfectly fine – the Serbian is the best player ever, and might not be at the height of his physical powers now, but has developed sufficient experience and strategic intelligence to compensate for quite a bit of the drop-off. The problem is those who were anticipating the American to win, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was yet to done anything that indicated he would.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the tour nonetheless. He’s a patient, reflective presence in press conferences, exceeding virtually anyone on the men's tour except for the Russian star, prepared to not only express his emotions or the strategy he believed decided a contest, but clarify it. That he should shoulder the majority of the blame for America not produce a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick feels unjust. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the rankings, maybe they can share that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

American legend Group

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Swedish icon Group

• The Italian champion
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably dwell on it indefinitely if I don’t do it,” the American told a journalist in the summer of winning a major. It is hoped he realizes that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t fulfill that objective, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable reign is in fact highly unlikely for everybody else. {