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I possess a few opinions about that remarks made by ESPN broadcaster a well-known announcer following Novak Djokovic's win over Taylor Fritz during the US Open quarter-finals. Look – Fritz is the United States, the commentator is from the US – and athletic competitions often encourage nationalism. A little bit of letdown would have been appropriate. Instead, Fowler invoked the continued absence of US male players at the majors: not one of them had lifted a title since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the tournament.

Everyone enjoy a storyline, me too. But come on. Even if Fritz had beaten the legend for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the next round, whom Fritz has yet to beat in an official match. And had he somehow gotten past that, it would have been title holder the Italian, versus him the American had dropped 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also split the last seven major titles (plus the Spaniard went on to thrash a fatigued Djokovic in the next round). Fritz stated in post-match interviews following his defeat that he actually preferred his draw, because it offered the opportunity to beat the three best competitors in the sport back-to-back. Fritz is more than justified to aspire to the achievement; an competitor is supposed to believe in themselves. But going into that Serbian quarter-final what other person in their right mind had the drought of American champions on the brain?

The American star's second serve the sole barrier between her and sustained success

The American, 28, is placed number four in the world entering the upcoming year-end championships and has secured his last six encounters over No 3 Alexander Zverev 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 ranking points away. His top-class delivery and powerful power on both forehand and reverse side are more than enough to defeat the majority of opponents on the professional circuit. Against the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, however, he is frequently helpless. The past few seasons has seen the curious emergence of lanky, towering players who can nonetheless move around with the surprising speed and grace of much shorter men. He is six-foot-five and appears that way. His movement is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he seldom win a rally that the other player was controlling, and playing a soft shot versus him is typically a safe bet. That serves as a pretty harsh restriction on his upside.

The American has made a number of dramatic, improbable improvements throughout his career. At the beginning of the decade, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. 24 months later, he was sniffing the elite ten. Last year, he suddenly surged up to fourth place – and held the position. But the next leap, mixing it up with and defeating legendary figures like Alcaraz, Sinner, and even a declining Serbian, is the highest of all. What was the commentator have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate mentioning the ongoing drought of US male players winning major titles when Fritz had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just too much and the respect for the magnitude of the challenge insufficient.

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

The American's play in that very quarter-final should have been enough of an indication. Djokovic triumphed in four rounds, a win that only felt tenuous for brief periods towards the very end, when the American had saved a few match points and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared evenly matched during the rallies, with Fritz creating plenty of chances to break. But Djokovic saved service break opportunity after break point, prolonging the streak to the brink of frustration. When he finally did claim a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly produced a terrible service game to drop serve once more; the Serbian had lulled him into a skirmish peripheral 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 the sky. He prolonged the match twice on his backup delivery, but ultimately double-faulted. It was not a collapse, I didn’t think, just a consequence of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The match was fairly ironclad proof that the American is not good enough to beat any version of the Serbian, that was defeated by the Spaniard in the next round and did not particularly seem like he believed he could triumph. This is perfectly acceptable – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the height of his athletic abilities anymore, but has acquired enough experience and tactical know-how to make up for quite a bit of the decline. The issue is the individuals who were anticipating the American to win, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was had not done anything that indicated he would.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the circuit regardless. He’s a patient, reflective presence in press conferences, exceeding almost everyone on the men's tour except for the Russian star, prepared to not just say his emotions or the tactic he believed determined a contest, but explain it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for America not produce a male major champion since the last American titlist feels unjust. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the rankings, perhaps they can share that load.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Group

• The Spanish phenom
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely think about it forever if I fail to accomplish it,” the American told a journalist in June of winning a grand slam. I hope he understands that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t fulfill that goal, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable reign is in fact highly unlikely for all other players. {