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I have some opinions regarding that comments delivered by ESPN commentator Chris Fowler following Novak Djokovic's victory over Taylor Fritz during the US Open quarter-finals. Look – Fritz is American, the commentator is from the US – and sports often encourage patriotic sentiment. A little bit of letdown would have been appropriate. Rather, he invoked the ongoing absence of US male players at the majors: none of them had lifted a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the tournament.

We all enjoy a storyline, me too. But come on. Suppose Fritz defeated the legend for the first time, force of nature the Spanish star was waiting in the following match, whom he has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And if he’d somehow survived that, it would have been title holder the Italian, versus him the American had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also split the last seven major titles (plus Alcaraz went on to defeat a fatigued Serbian in the next round). He stated in press following his defeat that he actually preferred his path, because it offered the opportunity to beat the three best players in the sport back-to-back. He is more than justified to aspire to the accomplishment; an competitor is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Serbian last eight match what other person in their right mind had the drought of US winners in mind?

The American star's weaker delivery the only thing between her and sustained success

The American, twenty-eight, is ranked number four in the world entering the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has won his last six matches over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. Presumably he might take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that’s as far as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard sit a vast gap of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class serve and concussive strength on both forehand and backhand are sufficiently enough to defeat the majority of opponents on the professional circuit. Against the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, though, Fritz is frequently overmatched. The past few seasons has witnessed the interesting rise of lanky, towering players who can nevertheless move around with the surprising quickness and fluidity of smaller players. Fritz is six-foot-five and appears that way. His footwork is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his legs. So he seldom win a rally that the opponent was controlling, and hitting a soft shot versus him is usually a safe bet. That acts as a pretty severe limitation on his potential.

Fritz has made a number of dramatic, unexpected improvements over the years. Early on of the decade, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. Two years later, he was sniffing the top 10. The previous season, he suddenly surged to fourth place – and held the position. But the next leap, mixing it up with and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and including a declining Serbian, is the toughest 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 commenting on the ongoing drought of American men winning major titles when Fritz had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the challenge insufficient.

The American star made a personal best run to the All England Club semi-finals in July.

Fritz’s play in that very quarter-final should have been sufficient of an indication. Djokovic won in four rounds, a victory that only felt uncertain for brief periods towards the very end, when Fritz had saved a few championship opportunities and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The pair appeared evenly matched during the rallies, with the American earning numerous opportunities to break. But the champion saved service break opportunity after service break opportunity, prolonging the streak to the brink of frustration. When he eventually did claim a single of the chances at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately produced a horrendous game to drop serve once more; Djokovic had drawn him into a skirmish secondary to the main contest and compelled him to expend excessive effort to prevail. Facing match points in the last game, Fritz’s first serve floated to the sky. He extended the contest two times on his second serve, but finally committed two errors. It was not a collapse, I didn’t think, just a consequence of needing to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The match was fairly compelling evidence that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to beat any version of Djokovic, who was defeated by Alcaraz in the next round and did not especially seem like he believed he could win. This is perfectly fine – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the peak of his athletic abilities now, but has acquired sufficient knowledge and strategic intelligence to make up for quite a bit of the drop-off. The problem is those who were expecting the American to prevail, and pressuring him to do so, when he was had not done anything that indicated he could.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the tour nonetheless. He’s a patient, thoughtful voice in media sessions, exceeding almost everyone on the men's tour except for the Russian star, willing to not just express how he feels or the tactic he believed decided a contest, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for America failing to spawn a male major champion since the last American titlist feels unjust. (Since the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, perhaps they can share that load.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

American legend Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Bjorn Borg Division

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely dwell on it indefinitely if I fail to do it,” Fritz informed a journalist in June of claiming a major. I hope he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t fulfill that goal, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying empire is actually highly improbable for everybody else. {