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I possess some opinions regarding that comments made by ESPN broadcaster a well-known announcer after Novak Djokovic's victory over Taylor Fritz during the New York major quarter-finals. Look – the athlete represents American, Fowler is American – and athletic competitions frequently lend themselves to nationalism. Some letdown was appropriate. Rather, he invoked the continued drought of US male players at grand slam tournaments: none of them has won a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all enjoy a narrative, myself included. But really. Even if Fritz had beaten the legend for the first time, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the next round, who he has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And if he’d somehow survived that, it would have been title holder the Italian, versus him Fritz had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the previous seven major titles (plus the Spaniard went on to thrash a fatigued Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz said in press after the loss that he actually liked his draw, because it presented the opportunity to beat the three best competitors in the sport back-to-back. Fritz is well within his right to aim for the accomplishment; an competitor is supposed to have faith in themselves. But going into that Djokovic quarter-final who else sensibly had the drought of US winners in mind?

The American star's weaker delivery the only thing standing in her way and sustained success

Fritz, 28, is placed number four in the global rankings entering the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his last six matches over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. It's likely he could take that spot for himself in the future. But evidently that at present, that’s as far as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a vast gap of performance metrics away. Fritz’s top-class delivery and powerful power on both forehand and reverse side are sufficiently adequate to defeat most opponents on the ATP tour. Against the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, though, Fritz is frequently overmatched. The last several years has seen the interesting rise of lanky, towering athletes who can nonetheless cover the court with the alarming quickness and grace of smaller players. Fritz is six-foot-five and looks it. His movement is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he seldom steal a point that the opponent was dictating, and playing a drop shot against him is typically a reliable tactic. That serves as a quite severe limitation on his upside.

Fritz has made a several dramatic, improbable advancements 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 surged to fourth place – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and even a aging Djokovic, is the highest of all. What could the commentator have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the ongoing slump of US male players winning grand slams when Fritz had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply too much and the respect for the magnitude of the task too little.

The American star made a personal best advancement to the All England Club last four in July.

Fritz’s performance in that very quarter-final ought to have been sufficient of an sign. The Serbian triumphed in four sets, a victory that only seemed tenuous for moments towards the very end, when the American had survived a couple match points and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the rallies, with Fritz creating plenty of opportunities to break. But Djokovic saved break point after break point, prolonging the run to the point of agony. When Fritz eventually did convert a single of the chances at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately produced a terrible game to drop serve again; the Serbian had lulled him into a battle peripheral to the main contest and forced him to expend excessive effort to win it. Down set points in the final game, his first serve floated to heaven. He extended the match twice on his backup delivery, but ultimately double-faulted. It was not a choke, in my opinion, just a consequence of needing to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The match was quite compelling evidence that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any version of the Serbian, that was defeated by Alcaraz in the following match and never particularly seem like he thought he could triumph. This is perfectly acceptable – Djokovic is the best player ever, and may not be at the peak of his physical powers anymore, but has developed enough knowledge and tactical know-how to make up for quite a bit of the decline. The problem is those who were anticipating Fritz to win, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was yet to done anything that indicated he would.

The American is an asset to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, reflective presence in press conferences, exceeding virtually everyone on the ATP except for Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not only say how he feels or the tactic he believed decided a match, but explain it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for America failing to spawn a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick seems unjust. (Since Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the standings, perhaps they can share that load.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

American legend Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Group

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

“I’d probably dwell on it indefinitely if I don’t accomplish it,” Fritz told an interviewer in the summer of claiming a major. I hope he realizes that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t fulfill that objective, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable empire is actually extremely unlikely for everybody else. {