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I possess a few thoughts about the comments delivered by the sports network commentator Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's win over Taylor Fritz in the US Open last eight. Consider – the athlete represents American, the commentator is American – and sports often encourage patriotic sentiment. Some letdown would have been understandable. Rather, Fowler invoked the continued absence of US male players at grand slam tournaments: not one of them had lifted a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the tournament.

We all love a storyline, myself included. But really. Even if Fritz had beaten the legend for the first time, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was waiting in the following match, whom Fritz has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And had he someway survived that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. The two young stars had also divided the last seven major titles (and the Spaniard went on to thrash a tired Djokovic in the subsequent match). Fritz said in post-match interviews following his defeat that he in fact preferred his path, because it presented the chance to beat the top three competitors in the sport in succession. He is more than within his right 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?

Coco Gauff’s weaker delivery the only thing between her and sustained success

Fritz, 28, is placed number four in the world starting the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his last six matches over third-ranked the German with increasing ease. Presumably he could take that spot for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that right now, that is as far as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a vast gap of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class serve and powerful strength on both forehand and backhand are sufficiently adequate to dispose of the majority of rivals on the professional circuit. Against the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, though, he is often helpless. The past few years has witnessed the interesting rise of tall, gangly players who can nevertheless move around with the surprising speed and fluidity of much shorter men. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His footwork is rigid, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his legs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the other player was dictating, and playing a soft shot against him is usually a reliable tactic. That serves as a quite severe limitation on his potential.

The American has made a number of dramatic, unexpected advancements throughout his career. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. Two years after, he was sniffing the elite ten. The previous season, he suddenly exploded to fourth place – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and beating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, the Italian, and including a declining 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 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 desperation is simply excessive and the respect for the difficulty of the challenge too little.

The American star made a personal best run to the Wimbledon semi-finals in the summer.

Fritz’s performance in that very last eight match ought to have been enough of an indication. Djokovic triumphed in four sets, a victory that only seemed uncertain for moments towards the very end, when Fritz had survived a few match points and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The pair looked well-balanced during the rallies, with the American earning numerous chances to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued service break opportunity after break point, prolonging the streak to the point of frustration. When he eventually did claim a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately produced a terrible game to lose his own serve once more; the Serbian had lulled him into a skirmish peripheral to the main contest and compelled him to use excessive energy to win it. Down match points in the last game, Fritz’s first serve sailed to the sky. He prolonged the contest two times on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It was not a choke, I didn’t think, only a consequence of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The match was quite compelling proof that Fritz is not good enough to beat any form of the Serbian, that lost to the Spaniard in the following match and did not particularly seem like he thought he could triumph. This is absolutely fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has developed sufficient knowledge and tactical know-how to compensate for quite a bit of the drop-off. The issue is the individuals who were expecting Fritz to win, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was yet to accomplished anything that suggested he would.

Fritz is an asset to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in media sessions, exceeding virtually anyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, prepared to not just say how he feels or the strategy he believed decided a match, but clarify it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the blame for the United States not produce a male major champion since Andy Roddick seems unjust. (Now that Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the rankings, perhaps they can divide that burden.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

American legend Group

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• The Italian stylist

Swedish icon Division

• The Italian champion
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• The rising American
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I would likely dwell on it forever if I don’t accomplish it,” Fritz informed a journalist in the summer of claiming a grand slam. I hope he understands that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t achieve that objective, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying empire is actually highly unlikely for all other players. {