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I possess some thoughts regarding the comments made by the sports network broadcaster Chris Fowler after the Serbian champion's win over Taylor Fritz during the US Open last eight. Look – Fritz is American, Fowler is from the US – and athletic competitions often encourage patriotic sentiment. Some disappointment would have been understandable. Instead, Fowler invoked the ongoing absence of US male players at grand slam tournaments: 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 Fritz defeated the legend for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was looming in the following match, who Fritz has never defeated in an official match. And if he’d somehow survived that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, versus him the American had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. The two young stars had also split the last seven major titles (plus the Spaniard proceeded to thrash a fatigued Serbian in the next round). He stated in press after the loss that he in fact preferred his path, because it offered the chance to defeat the three best players in the world 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 going into that Serbian quarter-final who else sensibly had the drought of American champions on the brain?

The American star's second serve the only thing between her and consistent victories

The American, twenty-eight, is placed fourth in the global rankings starting this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has secured his last six matches over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. Presumably he could take that spot for himself in the future. But evidently that at present, that is as high as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a vast gap of ranking points away. His elite delivery and powerful strength on each forehand and reverse side are more than enough to defeat most opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, though, he is often overmatched. The last several years has witnessed the curious emergence of lanky, towering players who can nonetheless move around with the surprising speed and grace of smaller players. He is six-foot-five 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 opponent was controlling, and playing a soft shot against him is typically a reliable tactic. That acts as a pretty harsh restriction on his upside.

The American has achieved a number of dramatic, improbable improvements over the years. At the beginning of the ten-year period, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. Two years after, he was approaching the top 10. The previous season, he unexpectedly surged to No 4 – and held the position. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and even a aging Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What was Fowler have been thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the ongoing drought of American men lifting grand slams when Fritz had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just too much and the respect for the magnitude of the challenge insufficient.

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

The American's performance in that exact last eight match should have been enough of an sign. Djokovic triumphed in four sets, a victory that only seemed uncertain for brief periods towards the conclusion, when Fritz had survived a couple match points and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The pair appeared evenly matched during the exchanges, with Fritz creating numerous chances to break. But the champion saved service break opportunity after break point, extending the streak to the brink of frustration. When Fritz eventually did convert one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly played a terrible service game to lose his own serve once more; the Serbian had drawn him into a battle peripheral to the real battle and forced him to use far too much effort to win it. Facing set points in the final game, his first serve floated to heaven. He prolonged the match two times on his backup delivery, but ultimately double-faulted. It wasn’t a choke, I didn’t think, just a consequence of having to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The contest was fairly compelling proof that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to defeat any version of the Serbian, who lost to Alcaraz in the next round and never particularly seem like he thought he could triumph. This is perfectly acceptable – the Serbian is the best player ever, and might not be at the peak of his athletic abilities now, but has acquired sufficient experience and strategic intelligence to compensate for quite a bit of the decline. The problem is those who were anticipating Fritz to prevail, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was had not accomplished anything that indicated he could.

The American is an valuable contributor to the tour regardless. He’s a calm, reflective presence in press conferences, exceeding almost everyone on the men's tour aside from Daniil Medvedev, willing to not only say how he feels or the strategy he believed determined a contest, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for the United States failing to produce a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick feels unfair. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the rankings, perhaps they can divide that load.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Group

• The Spanish phenom
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Swedish icon Division

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

“I would likely think about it forever if I fail to do it,” the American told a journalist in the summer of winning a major. I hope he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not fulfill that objective, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable reign is actually extremely improbable for all other players. {