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I have a few opinions regarding that remarks made by ESPN commentator Chris Fowler after the Serbian champion's win over Taylor Fritz in the New York major quarter-finals. Consider – Fritz is American, Fowler is American – and athletic competitions often encourage nationalism. A little bit of disappointment was appropriate. Rather, Fowler brought up the continued absence of US male players at the majors: not one of them has won a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and he had been the final representative in the competition.

Everyone love a storyline, me too. But come on. Suppose Fritz defeated the legend for the first time, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the next round, whom Fritz has yet to beat in an competitive encounter. And had he someway gotten past that, it would have been title holder the Italian, against whom Fritz had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the last seven major titles (plus Alcaraz went on to defeat a fatigued Djokovic in the subsequent match). Fritz said in press following his defeat that he in fact liked his draw, because it offered the chance to defeat the three best competitors in the world in succession. Fritz is more than justified to aim for the accomplishment; an competitor is supposed to believe in themselves. But entering that Djokovic quarter-final what other person sensibly had the lack of US winners in mind?

The American star's weaker delivery the only thing standing in her way and consistent victories

The American, twenty-eight, is ranked number four in the global rankings entering this week’s 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 coming years. But it’s clear that right now, that is as far as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a chasm of ranking points away. Fritz’s elite delivery and powerful power on both front side and backhand are sufficiently adequate to defeat the majority of opponents on the professional circuit. Against the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, though, he is often overmatched. The last several years has witnessed the curious emergence of lanky, towering players who can nonetheless move around with the surprising speed and fluidity of much shorter men. He is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His movement is rigid, as if he hasn't fully adapted 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 quite severe limitation on his upside.

Fritz has achieved a several significant, improbable improvements over the years. Early on of the decade, he was hovering around the bottom of the top 30. Two years after, he was sniffing the top 10. The previous season, he suddenly surged to No 4 – and held the position. But the next leap, competing against and beating legendary figures like Alcaraz, Sinner, and including a declining 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 appropriate mentioning the ongoing slump of US male players winning major titles when he had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just excessive and the respect for the difficulty of the task insufficient.

The American star made a personal best run to the All England Club last four in the summer.

The American's performance in that very last eight match ought to have been sufficient of an indication. Djokovic won in four rounds, a victory that only felt uncertain for brief periods towards the conclusion, when the American had saved a couple match points and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The duo looked evenly matched during the exchanges, with Fritz earning numerous opportunities to win the opponent's serve. But Djokovic saved service break opportunity after service break opportunity, extending the streak to the brink of frustration. When he finally did convert a single of the opportunities at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly played a horrendous game to lose his own serve again; the Serbian had lulled him into a battle secondary to the main contest and compelled him to use far too much energy to prevail. Facing set points in the final game, his first serve floated to heaven. He prolonged the match twice on his second serve, but ultimately double-faulted. It wasn’t a choke, I didn’t think, just a result of needing to hit too many weaker deliveries.

The match was fairly compelling evidence that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any version of the Serbian, who lost to Alcaraz in the next round and never especially appeared like he thought he could win. This is perfectly fine – Djokovic is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the height of his physical powers now, but has acquired sufficient experience and tactical know-how to compensate for a significant portion of the decline. The problem is those who were expecting Fritz to prevail, and pressuring him to do so, when he was had not accomplished anything that indicated he could.

The American is an asset to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, reflective presence in press conferences, more so than virtually anyone on the men's tour aside from Daniil Medvedev, willing to not only express his emotions or the strategy he felt determined a match, but explain it. That he should bear the brunt of the responsibility for the United States not produce a male major champion since the last American titlist feels unjust. (Now that Ben Shelton is rubbing shoulders with him in the rankings, perhaps they can divide that load.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Group

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

Bjorn Borg Division

• The Italian champion
• The German powerhouse
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably think about it indefinitely if I fail to do it,” Fritz told a journalist in the summer of winning a major. I hope he understands that he’s not unsuccessful if he doesn’t fulfill that goal, that breaking through Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying empire is actually extremely unlikely for all other players. {