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I possess a few opinions about the remarks delivered by ESPN broadcaster Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's win over Taylor Fritz during the US Open last eight. Consider – Fritz is American, Fowler is from the US – and sports often encourage nationalism. A little bit of letdown was appropriate. Instead, he brought up the ongoing absence of US male players at the majors: not one of them has won a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the tournament.

Everyone enjoy a narrative, myself included. But come on. Suppose Fritz had beaten Djokovic for the first time, force of nature the Spanish star was looming in the following match, who Fritz has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And had he somehow gotten past that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, against whom Fritz had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also divided the previous seven grand slams (and Alcaraz proceeded to thrash a fatigued Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz said in press after the loss that he in fact preferred his draw, because it presented the chance to defeat the three best competitors in the sport back-to-back. He is more than within his right to aspire to the achievement; an athlete is supposed to have faith in themselves. But going into that Djokovic quarter-final who else sensibly had the drought of American champions in mind?

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

Fritz, 28, is ranked number four in the world starting the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has won his previous six encounters over No 3 the German with increasing ease. It's likely he might take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that’s as far as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard lie a vast gap of performance metrics away. His elite delivery and concussive strength on both forehand and reverse side are sufficiently adequate to defeat the majority of opponents on the professional circuit. Against the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, however, he is often helpless. The past few years has seen the interesting rise of tall, gangly athletes who can nevertheless move around with the surprising quickness and fluidity of smaller men. He is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His movement is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the opponent was controlling, and playing a soft shot against him is typically a reliable tactic. That serves as a pretty harsh limitation on his upside.

The American has made a number of dramatic, unexpected improvements throughout his career. Early on of the decade, he was hovering around the lower end of the top 30. Two years after, he was approaching the top 10. Last year, he suddenly surged up to No 4 – and maintained the position. But the next leap, mixing it up with and beating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and even a declining Serbian, is the highest of all. What was the commentator thinking? That Fritz, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the ongoing drought of American men winning major titles when he had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just excessive and the respect for the magnitude of the task too little.

The American star achieved a career-best run to the Wimbledon last four in the summer.

Fritz’s play in that very last eight match ought to have been sufficient of an indication. Djokovic triumphed in four rounds, a victory that only seemed uncertain for brief periods towards the very end, when Fritz had saved a couple match points and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The pair appeared evenly matched during the exchanges, with Fritz creating plenty of opportunities to break. But the champion rescued break point after break point, extending the run to the point of agony. When Fritz finally did convert a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately produced a terrible service game to drop serve again; the Serbian had lulled him into a skirmish secondary to the main contest and compelled him to use excessive energy to prevail. Facing set points in the last game, his first serve floated to the sky. He extended the contest two times on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It was not a collapse, I didn’t think, only a consequence of needing to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The contest was quite ironclad proof that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any form of the Serbian, who was defeated by Alcaraz in the following match and did not especially appeared like he thought he could triumph. This is absolutely acceptable – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the peak of his athletic abilities anymore, but has developed enough knowledge and tactical know-how to compensate for a significant portion of the decline. The issue is the individuals who were anticipating the American to prevail, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was had not accomplished anything that suggested he could.

Fritz is an asset to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, reflective presence in media sessions, exceeding almost everyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, prepared to not only say his emotions or the tactic he felt determined a match, but explain it. That he should shoulder the majority of the blame for the United States failing to produce a male major champion since the last American titlist feels unfair. (Since Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, perhaps they can share that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

American legend Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Swedish icon Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• The rising American
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely think about it indefinitely if I fail to do it,” the American told an interviewer in the summer of claiming a major. I hope he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t achieve that goal, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying empire is in fact highly improbable for all other players. {