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I have some thoughts regarding that remarks delivered by the sports network commentator Chris Fowler following Novak Djokovic's win over the American player in the US Open quarter-finals. Look – the athlete represents the United States, Fowler is from the US – and athletic competitions often lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. Some disappointment was understandable. Rather, Fowler invoked the continued drought of US male players at grand slam tournaments: none of them had lifted a title since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the tournament.

We all love a storyline, me too. But really. Even if the American had beaten the legend for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent the Spanish star was waiting in the following match, whom he 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 lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. The two young stars had also divided the previous seven grand slams (plus the Spaniard went on to defeat a fatigued Djokovic in the next round). He stated in press following his defeat that he actually liked his path, because it offered the chance to defeat the three best players in the sport in succession. He is well within his right to aspire to the accomplishment; an competitor is supposed to have faith in themselves. But going into that Djokovic quarter-final what other person sensibly had the lack of US winners on the brain?

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

The American, twenty-eight, is ranked fourth in the global rankings entering the upcoming year-end championships and has won his last six encounters over third-ranked the German with growing comfort. It's likely he could take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that’s as high as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a chasm of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class serve and concussive power on each front side and backhand are more than enough to defeat the majority of opponents on the professional circuit. When facing the handful of generational talents, however, Fritz is often overmatched. The last several seasons has seen the curious rise of lanky, towering athletes who can nevertheless cover the court with the surprising quickness and fluidity of much shorter players. He is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His footwork is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the opponent was dictating, and playing a drop shot versus him is typically a safe bet. That acts as a pretty harsh restriction on his upside.

The American has achieved a number of dramatic, improbable advancements throughout his career. Early on of the ten-year period, he was hovering around the lower end of the world's best thirty. Two years after, he was sniffing the top 10. The previous season, he unexpectedly exploded up to No 4 – and maintained the spot. But the subsequent step, competing against and beating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and even a aging Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What was the commentator thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the continuing drought of American men winning grand slams when he had exited the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just excessive and the respect for the difficulty of the challenge too little.

Taylor Fritz achieved a career-best run to the Wimbledon semi-finals in July.

Fritz’s performance in that exact quarter-final should have been enough of an indication. Djokovic triumphed in four rounds, a victory that only seemed tenuous for brief periods towards the very end, when Fritz had survived a few match points and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo looked well-balanced during the rallies, with the American earning plenty of chances to win the opponent's serve. But the champion rescued service break opportunity after break point, prolonging the run to the brink of frustration. When he eventually did convert a single of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly produced a horrendous game to lose his own serve again; Djokovic had drawn him into a battle secondary to the main contest and forced him to expend excessive effort to win it. Down set points in the final game, Fritz’s primary delivery floated to the sky. He extended the contest two times on his backup delivery, but finally committed two errors. It was not a collapse, in my opinion, just a result of needing to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The contest was quite compelling proof that the American is insufficiently skilled to beat any form of Djokovic, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the next round and never particularly seem like he thought he could triumph. This is absolutely acceptable – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has acquired sufficient experience and strategic intelligence to compensate for a significant portion of the drop-off. The problem is those who were anticipating Fritz to prevail, and pressuring him to do so, when he was yet to done anything that indicated he could.

The American is an valuable contributor to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, reflective voice in media sessions, exceeding almost anyone on the men's tour except for Daniil Medvedev, willing to not just say his emotions or the tactic he believed decided a match, but explain it. That he should shoulder the majority of the blame for America not produce a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick feels unfair. (Now that Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, maybe they can share that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

Jimmy Connors Group

• The Spanish phenom
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• The Australian speedster
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• The rising American
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I would likely think about it forever if I fail to do it,” Fritz told an interviewer in the summer of claiming a major. It is hoped he realizes that he’s not a failure if he does not achieve that goal, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's young, terrifying reign is actually extremely improbable for everybody else. {