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I possess a few opinions about that remarks made by the sports network broadcaster Chris Fowler after Novak Djokovic's win over the American player in the US Open quarter-finals. Consider – Fritz is the United States, the commentator is from the US – and athletic competitions often lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. A little bit of disappointment would have been appropriate. Rather, he brought up the continued absence of US male players at the majors: none of them had lifted a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the competition.

We all enjoy a narrative, me too. But really. Even if Fritz defeated the legend for the initial occasion, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the next round, who Fritz has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And if he’d somehow gotten past that, it would have been defending champion the Italian, against whom Fritz had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. The two young stars had also split the previous seven grand slams (and the Spaniard went on to thrash a fatigued Djokovic in the next round). Fritz said in press following his defeat that he in fact preferred his path, because it presented the opportunity to beat the top three players in the world in succession. Fritz is more than justified to aspire to the accomplishment; an competitor is supposed to have faith in themselves. But entering that Serbian quarter-final who else in their right mind had the lack of American champions on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the sole barrier between her and consistent victories

Fritz, twenty-eight, is placed number four in the world starting this week’s ATP World Tour Finals and has won his previous six matches over No 3 Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. It's likely he might take that spot for himself in the coming years. But it’s clear that right now, that is as far as he can climb: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a chasm of performance metrics away. Fritz’s elite delivery and concussive strength on each forehand and backhand are more than adequate to defeat the majority of rivals on the ATP tour. Against the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, though, Fritz is often overmatched. The past few years has witnessed the curious emergence of tall, gangly athletes who can nevertheless move around with the surprising speed and fluidity of smaller players. He is 6ft 5ins and looks it. His footwork is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his limbs. So he’ll rarely win a rally that the other player was controlling, and hitting a drop shot against him is usually a safe bet. That serves as a quite severe limitation on his potential.

The American has made a number of significant, unexpected improvements over the years. Early on of the decade, he was hovering around the bottom of the world's best thirty. 24 months after, he was sniffing the top 10. Last year, he unexpectedly exploded to fourth place – and maintained the position. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and defeating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, Sinner, and even a declining Serbian, is the highest of all. What could Fowler thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a serious threat to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth mentioning the ongoing drought of US male players winning major titles when Fritz had departed the New York major in the quarter-finals? The thirst is simply excessive and the appreciation for the magnitude of the task too little.

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

The American's performance in that very quarter-final ought to have been sufficient of an sign. Djokovic won in four rounds, a victory that only seemed tenuous for moments towards the conclusion, when the American had survived a few match points and had a opportunity to hold for 5-5. The pair looked evenly matched during the rallies, with Fritz earning plenty of chances to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic rescued service break opportunity after service break opportunity, extending the run to the brink of frustration. When he finally did claim a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately produced a terrible game to drop serve once more; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle secondary to the real battle and forced him to use far too much effort to win it. Facing match points in the final game, Fritz’s primary delivery floated to heaven. He extended the match twice on his backup delivery, but finally double-faulted. It was not a choke, I didn’t think, just a result of needing to hit too many second serves.

The match was quite compelling evidence that the American is insufficiently skilled to beat any version of the Serbian, who was defeated by Alcaraz in the following match and did not especially appeared like he thought he could win. This is perfectly acceptable – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the peak of his athletic abilities anymore, but has acquired sufficient experience and tactical know-how to compensate for a significant portion of the drop-off. The problem is the individuals who were anticipating Fritz to prevail, and putting pressure on him to do so, when he was yet to done anything that suggested he could.

Fritz is an valuable contributor to the tour nonetheless. He’s a patient, reflective voice in media sessions, more so than virtually anyone on the ATP except for Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not just express his emotions or the strategy he felt decided a match, but clarify it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the blame for America failing to produce a male major champion since the last American titlist seems unjust. (Now that Ben Shelton is competing alongside him in the standings, perhaps they can divide that load.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

American legend Group

• The Spanish phenom
• The American contender
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• The Italian stylist

Swedish icon Group

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• The rising American
• The Canadian talent

“I would likely dwell on it forever if I don’t accomplish it,” the American told an interviewer 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 goal, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable empire is in fact extremely unlikely for everybody else. {