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I have some opinions regarding the comments delivered by ESPN broadcaster Chris Fowler following Novak Djokovic's win over the American player in the US Open quarter-finals. Consider – the athlete represents American, the commentator is from the US – and athletic competitions often lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. A little bit of letdown was appropriate. Rather, he invoked the ongoing drought of US male players at grand slam tournaments: none of them had lifted a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the competition.

Everyone enjoy a storyline, me too. But come on. Even if the American defeated the legend for the first time, phenomenal talent Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the following match, who he has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And had he someway survived 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 last seven grand slams (plus the Spaniard proceeded to thrash a fatigued Serbian in the next round). He said in press after the loss that he in fact preferred his draw, because it offered the opportunity to beat the top three players in the world in succession. Fritz is well within his right to aim for the accomplishment; an athlete is meant to believe in themselves. But entering that Djokovic quarter-final who else sensibly had the drought of US winners on the brain?

The American star's weaker delivery the sole barrier between her and sustained success

Fritz, 28, is placed fourth in the global rankings starting this week’s year-end championships and has secured his last six matches over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. Presumably he could take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that’s as far as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard lie a chasm of performance metrics away. Fritz’s elite serve and powerful power on each forehand and reverse side are sufficiently enough to defeat the majority of opponents on the ATP tour. When facing the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, though, Fritz is often overmatched. The past few seasons has witnessed the interesting rise of lanky, towering players who can nonetheless move around with the surprising quickness and fluidity of much shorter players. Fritz is six-foot-five and appears that way. His movement is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his legs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the opponent was dictating, and playing a soft shot versus him is typically a safe bet. That acts as a pretty harsh limitation on his potential.

The American has made a several dramatic, unexpected improvements over the years. Early on of the decade, he was circling the bottom of the world's best thirty. Two years after, he was sniffing the elite ten. The previous season, he unexpectedly surged to No 4 – and maintained the position. But the next leap, competing against and defeating all-time-greats like Alcaraz, the Italian, and including a declining Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler thinking? That the American, 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 lifting grand slams when Fritz had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply excessive and the appreciation for the magnitude of the challenge insufficient.

The American star achieved a career-best run to the All England Club semi-finals in July.

The American's performance in that exact last eight match ought to have been enough of an indication. Djokovic triumphed in four sets, a win that only felt uncertain for brief periods towards the conclusion, when Fritz had survived a few match points and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared well-balanced during the exchanges, with Fritz creating plenty of opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But the champion rescued service break opportunity after break point, prolonging the streak to the brink of agony. When he finally did claim one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he immediately produced a terrible game to lose his own serve again; the Serbian had lulled him into a battle secondary to the main contest and compelled him to expend excessive energy to prevail. Facing set points in the final game, his first serve sailed to the sky. He extended the match twice on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It was not a collapse, in my opinion, just a result of needing to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The contest was quite compelling proof that the American is not good enough to defeat any form of Djokovic, who was defeated by the Spaniard in the next round and never especially appeared like he believed he could win. This is perfectly fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and may not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has developed sufficient knowledge and tactical know-how to compensate for quite a bit of the decline. The problem is those who were anticipating the American to prevail, and pressuring him to do so, when he was had not done anything that indicated he could.

The American is an asset to the tour regardless. He’s a patient, thoughtful presence in press conferences, more so than almost anyone on the ATP except for the Russian star, prepared to not only express his emotions or the tactic he believed decided a match, but explain it. That he should shoulder the majority of the blame for the United States failing to spawn a male major champion since the last American titlist feels unfair. (Now that Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, perhaps they can share that load.)

Year-End Championships: Singles Groups

American legend Group

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

Bjorn Borg Group

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• Félix Auger-Aliassime (Can)

“I’d probably dwell on it forever if I don’t do it,” Fritz informed an interviewer in June of claiming a major. I hope he realizes that he’s not unsuccessful if he does not fulfill that objective, that breaking through Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying empire is actually extremely improbable for everybody else. {