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I have some thoughts about that comments made by the sports network broadcaster Chris Fowler after the Serbian champion's victory over the American player during the New York major quarter-finals. Consider – Fritz is American, Fowler is from the US – and sports frequently encourage nationalism. Some letdown would have been appropriate. Instead, he brought up the ongoing absence of US male players at grand slam tournaments: not one of them had lifted a title since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the tournament.

We all enjoy a narrative, me too. But really. Suppose the American had beaten the legend for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was waiting in the following match, whom Fritz has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And had he somehow gotten past that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, versus him Fritz had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the previous seven grand slams (plus Alcaraz proceeded to thrash a fatigued Djokovic in the subsequent match). Fritz said in press after the loss that he actually preferred his draw, because it presented the chance to defeat the top three players in the world in succession. Fritz is more than justified to aspire to the achievement; an competitor is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Djokovic quarter-final what other person sensibly had the drought of US winners on the brain?

The American star's second serve the sole barrier between her and consistent victories

The American, twenty-eight, is placed fourth in the world starting the upcoming year-end championships and has secured his previous six encounters over No 3 the German with increasing ease. Presumably he could take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that’s as far as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a chasm of performance metrics away. His top-class delivery and concussive strength on each forehand and reverse side are more than adequate to dispose of most rivals on the professional circuit. When facing the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, though, Fritz is often overmatched. The last several seasons has seen the curious emergence of tall, gangly players who can nevertheless move around with the alarming quickness and fluidity of smaller players. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His movement is rigid, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he seldom steal a point that the other player was dictating, and hitting a soft shot versus him is typically a reliable tactic. That acts as a quite harsh limitation on his upside.

The American has achieved a number of significant, improbable improvements throughout his career. Early on of the ten-year period, he was circling the lower end of the top 30. 24 months later, he was approaching the elite ten. Last year, he unexpectedly surged up to No 4 – and maintained the position. But the next leap, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, Sinner, and even a declining Serbian, is the highest of all. What was Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the continuing drought of American men winning major titles when he had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply too much and the appreciation for the difficulty of the challenge too little.

The American star made a career-best advancement to the Wimbledon semi-finals in the summer.

The American's performance in that exact quarter-final ought to have been enough of an sign. The Serbian won in four sets, a victory that only seemed tenuous for moments towards the conclusion, when Fritz had survived a couple championship opportunities and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair looked evenly matched during the exchanges, with the American creating plenty of opportunities to break. But the champion rescued service break opportunity after break point, prolonging the run to the brink of frustration. When he eventually did convert a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately played a horrendous service game to lose his own serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle secondary to the main contest and forced him to use excessive energy to prevail. Down match points in the final game, his primary delivery floated to the sky. He prolonged the match twice on his backup delivery, but finally committed two errors. It wasn’t a collapse, in my opinion, only a result of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The match was quite ironclad proof that the American is not good enough to beat any version of the Serbian, that was defeated by Alcaraz in the following match and never particularly seem like he believed he could win. This is absolutely acceptable – the Serbian is the best player ever, and might not be at the height of his physical powers now, but has developed enough experience and strategic intelligence to compensate for quite a bit of the decline. The issue is those who were expecting Fritz to win, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was yet to done anything that suggested he would.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a patient, thoughtful presence in press conferences, exceeding almost anyone on the ATP aside from the Russian star, prepared to not just express his emotions or the strategy he believed decided a match, but clarify it. That he ought to shoulder the majority of the responsibility for America failing to produce a male major champion since the last American titlist feels unfair. (Since Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, perhaps they can divide that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Division

• The Spanish phenom
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely think about it forever if I fail to do it,” Fritz informed a journalist in June of winning a major. I hope he realizes that he’s not a failure if he does not fulfill that goal, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying empire is actually highly improbable for everybody else. {