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I have some thoughts regarding that remarks delivered by the sports network commentator a well-known announcer after the Serbian champion's victory over Taylor Fritz in the New York major quarter-finals. Look – Fritz is American, the commentator is American – and sports often lend themselves to nationalism. A little bit of letdown was understandable. Rather, Fowler brought up the continued absence of US male players at grand slam tournaments: none of them had lifted a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the competition.

Everyone enjoy a storyline, myself included. But come on. Suppose the American had beaten Djokovic for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was waiting in the next round, who Fritz has yet to beat in an official match. And had he someway survived that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, against whom Fritz had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the previous seven major titles (plus Alcaraz proceeded to thrash a tired Serbian in the next round). He stated in post-match interviews following his defeat that he actually liked his draw, because it presented the chance to defeat the top three competitors in the sport in succession. Fritz is well justified to aspire to the achievement; an athlete is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Serbian last eight match who else sensibly had the drought of American champions on the brain?

The American star's weaker delivery the sole barrier between her and consistent victories

Fritz, 28, is ranked number four in the global rankings starting this week’s year-end championships and has secured his last six matches over third-ranked the German with increasing ease. Presumably he might claim that position for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that is as high as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard lie a vast gap of performance metrics away. His top-class delivery and concussive strength on both front side and backhand are sufficiently adequate to defeat most opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the handful of generational talents, however, Fritz is often overmatched. The past few years has witnessed the curious emergence of lanky, towering players who can nevertheless move around with the alarming quickness and fluidity of smaller men. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His movement is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his legs. So he seldom win a rally that the other player was controlling, and hitting a drop shot against him is typically a reliable tactic. That serves as a quite harsh restriction on his upside.

Fritz has achieved a number of significant, unexpected advancements over the years. At the beginning of the decade, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. 24 months after, he was approaching the elite ten. The previous season, he suddenly surged to No 4 – and maintained the spot. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and beating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, Sinner, and even a aging Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the ongoing slump of US male players lifting grand slams when he had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just too much and the appreciation for the difficulty of the challenge insufficient.

Taylor Fritz made a personal best run to the All England Club semi-finals in the summer.

The American's performance in that very last eight match should have been sufficient of an sign. The Serbian triumphed in four sets, a victory that only seemed tenuous for brief periods towards the conclusion, when Fritz had survived a few championship opportunities and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The pair looked evenly matched during the exchanges, with Fritz earning plenty of chances to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued service break opportunity after service break opportunity, extending the run to the brink of agony. When he eventually did claim a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately produced a terrible game to lose his own serve once more; the Serbian had lulled him into a skirmish peripheral to the real battle and compelled him to use far too much energy to prevail. Down set points in the final game, his first serve sailed to heaven. He extended the contest twice on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It wasn’t a collapse, I didn’t think, only a consequence of having to hit too many second serves.

The contest was quite ironclad proof that the American is insufficiently skilled to beat any version of Djokovic, that lost to Alcaraz in the following match and never particularly seem like he believed he could triumph. This is perfectly fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the height of his physical powers anymore, but has acquired sufficient experience and tactical know-how to compensate for quite a bit of the decline. The issue is those who were anticipating the American to win, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was had not done anything that indicated he could.

The American is an valuable contributor to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in press conferences, exceeding virtually anyone on the men's tour aside from the Russian star, willing to not just say his emotions or the tactic he believed decided a match, but explain it. That he ought to shoulder the majority of the responsibility for the United States failing to spawn a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick feels unjust. (Now that the fellow American is competing alongside him in the rankings, maybe they can share that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

American legend Group

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

Bjorn Borg Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I would likely think about it forever if I don’t do it,” the American told an interviewer in June of winning a grand slam. It is hoped he realizes that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t achieve that goal, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable empire is in fact extremely improbable for all other players. {