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I have some thoughts regarding the remarks made by ESPN commentator Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's win over the American player in the US Open last eight. Consider – the athlete represents the United States, Fowler is from the US – and sports frequently lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. Some letdown was understandable. Rather, Fowler invoked the ongoing drought of US male players at the majors: none of them has won a title since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the tournament.

We all enjoy a storyline, me too. But really. Suppose the American had beaten the legend for the first time, force of nature the Spanish star was waiting in the following match, whom Fritz has yet to beat in an official match. And if he’d someway gotten past that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, against whom Fritz had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the last seven major titles (plus Alcaraz went on to thrash a tired Serbian in the subsequent match). He stated in press following his defeat that he actually preferred his draw, because it offered the chance to beat the top three competitors in the world in succession. Fritz is more than justified to aim for the accomplishment; an athlete is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Djokovic quarter-final who else sensibly had the lack of American champions in mind?

The American star's second serve the sole barrier standing in her way and sustained success

The American, twenty-eight, is placed fourth in the world starting this week’s year-end championships and has secured his last six encounters over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. Presumably he could claim that position for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that’s as high as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard sit a vast gap of ranking points away. His top-class serve and concussive power on each front side and reverse side are more than enough to dispose of the majority of rivals on the professional circuit. When facing the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, however, he is often overmatched. The last several seasons has seen the interesting emergence of lanky, towering players who can nevertheless cover the court with the alarming speed and fluidity of smaller players. He is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His movement is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he seldom steal a point that the other player was controlling, and playing a soft shot against him is typically a reliable tactic. That serves as a pretty harsh restriction on his upside.

The American has achieved a several significant, improbable improvements over the years. At the beginning of the decade, he was hovering around the lower end of the top 30. 24 months later, he was sniffing the top 10. Last year, he suddenly exploded up to No 4 – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, the Italian, and including a declining Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What was Fowler 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 continuing drought of US male players winning major titles when he had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the task too little.

The American star achieved 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 enough of an indication. Djokovic triumphed in four rounds, a win that only felt uncertain for brief periods towards the very end, when Fritz had saved a few championship opportunities and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo looked well-balanced during the rallies, with the American earning plenty of chances to win the opponent's serve. But the champion rescued break point after service break opportunity, prolonging the run to the point of agony. When he finally did convert a single of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly played a terrible game to lose his own serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle peripheral to the main contest and compelled him to use far too much energy to prevail. Facing set points in the last game, Fritz’s primary delivery floated to heaven. He extended the match twice on his backup delivery, but finally double-faulted. It wasn’t a choke, in my opinion, only a result of needing to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The match was quite ironclad evidence that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to defeat any form of Djokovic, who was defeated by Alcaraz in the next round and never especially seem like he believed he could win. This is absolutely fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the peak of his athletic abilities now, but has developed enough experience and tactical know-how to make up 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 had not accomplished anything that indicated he could.

The American is an asset to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in press conferences, more so than almost everyone on the men's tour except for the Russian star, prepared to not just say how he feels or the tactic he felt determined a match, but clarify it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the blame for America failing to spawn a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick seems unfair. (Now that the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, perhaps they can share that load.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

American legend Division

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

Bjorn Borg Division

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

“I would likely think about it indefinitely if I don’t accomplish it,” Fritz told an interviewer in June of claiming a major. I hope he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t fulfill that objective, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable empire is in fact highly unlikely for all other players. {