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I have a few thoughts about the comments delivered by the sports network broadcaster Chris Fowler after Novak Djokovic's win over Taylor Fritz in the US Open last eight. Look – Fritz is American, the commentator is from the US – and athletic competitions often encourage patriotic sentiment. Some disappointment would have been understandable. Instead, he brought up the ongoing absence of American men at grand slam tournaments: none of them has won a title since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all enjoy a storyline, me too. But really. Suppose the American had beaten Djokovic for the first time, phenomenal talent Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the following match, whom Fritz has never defeated in an official match. And had he someway survived that, it would have been title holder the Italian, versus him Fritz had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the previous seven major titles (plus the Spaniard went on to defeat a fatigued Serbian in the next round). He said in press after the loss that he actually preferred his draw, because it offered the opportunity to beat the top three players in the sport in succession. He is more than justified to aspire to the achievement; an competitor is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Djokovic quarter-final what other person sensibly had the drought of US winners on the brain?

The American star's weaker delivery the only thing between her and consistent victories

The American, 28, is ranked fourth in the world entering the upcoming year-end championships and has won his previous six encounters over No 3 Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. Presumably he might claim that position for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that is as far as he can climb: The Italian and Spaniard sit a chasm of ranking points away. His elite delivery and powerful power on each forehand and backhand are sufficiently enough to dispose of the majority of rivals on the professional circuit. Against the select few generational talents, however, Fritz is often helpless. The past few seasons has witnessed the curious emergence of lanky, towering players who can nevertheless move around with the alarming speed and fluidity of smaller men. He is six-foot-five and looks it. His footwork is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he seldom steal a point that the other player was controlling, and playing a soft shot versus him is typically a reliable tactic. That acts as a pretty harsh restriction on his upside.

Fritz has made a several significant, improbable improvements over the years. Early on of the decade, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. 24 months after, he was sniffing the elite ten. Last year, he unexpectedly surged up to fourth place – and held the position. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and including a aging Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could the commentator thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the continuing slump of US male players lifting grand slams when Fritz had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply too much and the respect for the magnitude of the task too little.

Taylor Fritz made a personal best advancement to the All England Club last four in the summer.

The American's performance in that very last eight match should have been sufficient of an sign. Djokovic triumphed in four rounds, a win that only felt uncertain for moments towards the very end, when the American had saved a few championship opportunities and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared evenly matched during the rallies, with Fritz creating numerous chances to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued break point after break point, extending the streak to the brink of agony. When Fritz finally did convert one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately played a terrible game to drop serve again; Djokovic had drawn him into a skirmish secondary to the main contest and compelled him to expend excessive effort to prevail. Facing match points in the final game, Fritz’s primary delivery floated to heaven. He prolonged the match twice on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It wasn’t a collapse, I didn’t think, only a result of needing to hit an excessive number of second serves.

The match was fairly ironclad evidence that the American is not good enough to beat any form of Djokovic, that lost to Alcaraz in the following match and never particularly seem like he thought he could triumph. This is perfectly fine – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the height of his physical powers now, but has acquired sufficient knowledge and tactical know-how to make up for a significant portion of the decline. The problem 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 indicated he would.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a calm, reflective voice in press conferences, more so than virtually everyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, willing to not just 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 seems unfair. (Now that the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, perhaps they can share that load.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

American legend Division

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• The Italian stylist

Swedish icon Group

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

“I’d probably dwell on it forever if I fail to accomplish it,” Fritz informed a journalist in June of claiming a grand slam. It is hoped he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t fulfill that goal, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s dominant, formidable empire is in fact extremely unlikely for everybody else. {