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I have some opinions regarding the remarks made by the sports network broadcaster Chris Fowler following Novak Djokovic's victory over the American player in the US Open quarter-finals. Consider – the athlete represents American, the commentator is American – and athletic competitions frequently lend themselves to nationalism. A little bit of disappointment was appropriate. Instead, he brought up the continued drought of American men at grand slam tournaments: none of them had lifted a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the final representative in the tournament.

We all enjoy a storyline, myself included. But come on. Suppose the American defeated the legend for the initial occasion, force of nature the Spanish star was looming in the next round, whom Fritz has yet to beat in an official match. And had he someway gotten past that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, against whom the American 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 defeat a tired Serbian in the next round). Fritz stated in press after the loss that he actually preferred his draw, because it offered the opportunity to defeat the top three players in the world back-to-back. He is more than within his right to aim for the achievement; an athlete is supposed to have faith in themselves. But going into that Djokovic last eight match who else sensibly had the lack of American champions on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the only thing between her and sustained success

The American, twenty-eight, is placed number four in the global rankings entering the upcoming year-end championships and has secured his last six encounters over No 3 the German with increasing ease. It's likely he could take that spot for himself in the future. But evidently that at present, that’s as high as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz lie a chasm of performance metrics away. Fritz’s elite delivery and concussive power on both forehand and reverse side are sufficiently adequate to defeat most opponents on the ATP tour. Against the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, however, he is frequently overmatched. The last several seasons has witnessed the curious emergence of tall, gangly athletes who can nevertheless cover the court with the surprising quickness and grace of smaller players. He is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His footwork is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he seldom win a rally that the opponent was dictating, and playing a drop shot against him is usually a reliable tactic. That serves as a pretty severe restriction on his potential.

Fritz has achieved a several significant, improbable advancements over the years. At the beginning of the decade, he was circling the lower end of the world's best thirty. Two years later, he was sniffing the top 10. The previous season, he unexpectedly exploded to fourth place – and held the position. But the subsequent step, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, Sinner, and even a aging Djokovic, is the highest of all. What could Fowler have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the ongoing drought of American men lifting major titles when Fritz had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply excessive and the respect for the difficulty of the task too little.

The American star made a career-best advancement to the All England Club last four in July.

The American's play in that very last eight match ought to have been sufficient of an indication. The Serbian triumphed in four rounds, a victory that only felt uncertain for moments towards the conclusion, when Fritz had saved a couple match points and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo looked evenly matched during the exchanges, with Fritz creating numerous opportunities to break. But Djokovic saved service break opportunity after break point, prolonging the streak to the brink of frustration. When he eventually did convert a single of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately produced a terrible game to drop serve again; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle peripheral to the real battle and compelled him to expend excessive effort to prevail. Facing set points in the last game, his primary delivery floated to heaven. He extended the match twice on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It wasn’t a collapse, I didn’t think, just a consequence of needing to hit too many second serves.

The match was quite compelling evidence that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to defeat any form of the Serbian, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the following match and did not particularly seem like he thought he could triumph. This is absolutely fine – the Serbian is the best player ever, and might not be at the peak of his athletic abilities now, but has acquired enough experience and tactical know-how to make up for a significant portion of the drop-off. The problem is those who were expecting the American to win, and putting pressure on him to achieve that, when he was had not done anything that indicated he would.

The American is an asset to the circuit nonetheless. He’s a patient, reflective voice in media sessions, more so than virtually anyone on the ATP aside from the Russian star, prepared to not just say his emotions or the tactic he felt decided a contest, but explain it. That he should shoulder the majority of the responsibility for America not spawn a male major champion since the last American titlist seems unfair. (Now that the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, maybe they can divide that load.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

American legend Group

• Carlos Alcaraz (Sp)
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• Lorenzo Musetti (It)

Bjorn Borg Division

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably think about it indefinitely if I don’t accomplish it,” Fritz informed a journalist in the summer of claiming a grand slam. It is hoped he realizes that he’s not a failure if he doesn’t achieve that objective, that breaking through the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable empire is in fact extremely improbable for everybody else. {