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I have a few thoughts about that remarks delivered by the sports network broadcaster Chris Fowler after Novak Djokovic's win over Taylor Fritz during the US Open quarter-finals. Consider – Fritz is American, the commentator is American – and athletic competitions frequently lend themselves to nationalism. Some disappointment was understandable. Rather, Fowler invoked the ongoing absence of US male players at grand slam tournaments: not one of them has won a title since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the final representative in the tournament.

We all enjoy a narrative, myself included. But really. Suppose the American defeated the legend for the initial occasion, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the next round, who he has yet to beat in an official match. And if he’d someway gotten past that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the previous seven major titles (and Alcaraz went on to thrash a fatigued Serbian in the next round). Fritz said in post-match interviews after the loss that he in fact liked his draw, because it presented the opportunity to beat the top three players in the sport back-to-back. Fritz is more than within his right to aim for the achievement; an athlete is supposed to have faith in themselves. But entering that Djokovic quarter-final who else sensibly had the drought of US winners on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the only thing standing in her way and sustained success

Fritz, 28, is placed number four in the world starting this week’s year-end championships and has won his last six encounters over No 3 Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. It's likely he could take that spot for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that right now, that’s as high as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard sit a vast gap of performance metrics away. Fritz’s top-class serve and concussive strength on each forehand and backhand are more than enough to defeat most rivals on the ATP tour. When facing the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, though, Fritz is often overmatched. The past few years has witnessed the curious rise of tall, gangly athletes who can nonetheless cover the court with the surprising speed and fluidity of much shorter men. Fritz is six-foot-five and looks it. His movement is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his legs. So he seldom steal a point that the other player was dictating, and hitting a soft shot against him is usually a reliable tactic. That acts as a quite harsh restriction on his potential.

The American has made a several significant, unexpected advancements over the years. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was hovering around the bottom of the top 30. Two years later, he was sniffing the top 10. Last year, he suddenly exploded up to fourth place – and held the spot. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and defeating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, Sinner, and even a declining Serbian, is the highest of all. What could Fowler have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate commenting on the ongoing drought of US male players lifting major titles when he had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the challenge too little.

The American star achieved a personal best advancement to the Wimbledon semi-finals in July.

Fritz’s play in that exact last eight match should have been enough of an sign. Djokovic won in four rounds, a victory that only seemed tenuous for moments towards the very end, when the American had survived a few match points and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The duo looked well-balanced during the exchanges, with the American earning numerous chances to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic saved break point after break point, prolonging the streak to the point of agony. When Fritz eventually did convert one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately played a terrible game to drop serve again; Djokovic had drawn him into a skirmish secondary to the main contest and forced him to use far too much effort to win it. Down set points in the last game, Fritz’s first serve floated to heaven. He prolonged the match twice on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It was not a collapse, I didn’t think, just a result of having to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The match was quite ironclad evidence that Fritz is not good enough to defeat any version of the Serbian, that lost to Alcaraz in the next round and did not especially seem like he thought he could triumph. This is absolutely fine – the Serbian is the best player ever, and might not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has developed sufficient knowledge and strategic intelligence to compensate for a significant portion of the decline. The issue is those who were expecting Fritz to prevail, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was yet to done anything that indicated he could.

The American is an asset to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in media sessions, more so than virtually anyone on the ATP except for Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not only express how he feels or the strategy he believed decided a match, but explain it. That he ought to shoulder the majority of the blame for the United States not spawn a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist seems unjust. (Since Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, perhaps they can divide that burden.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Division

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

Swedish icon Group

• The Italian champion
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• Ben Shelton (US)
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I’d probably dwell on it forever if I don’t do it,” the American told an interviewer in the summer of winning a major. I hope he realizes that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t fulfill that objective, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying empire is in fact highly improbable for all other players. {