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I possess a few opinions regarding the comments made by the sports network broadcaster Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's win over Taylor Fritz during the New York major last eight. Look – the athlete represents the United States, the commentator is American – and sports often encourage nationalism. Some letdown was appropriate. Rather, Fowler invoked the continued absence of US male players at the majors: none of them had lifted a title since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the last one standing in the competition.

We all enjoy a narrative, me too. But really. Suppose Fritz had beaten Djokovic for the first time, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the following match, whom he has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And had he somehow gotten past that, it would have been defending champion Jannik Sinner, against whom the American had lost 10 of the previous eleven sets. Alcaraz and Sinner had also split the last seven major titles (and Alcaraz went on to thrash a tired Serbian in the subsequent match). Fritz stated in press after the loss that he in fact liked his draw, because it offered the chance to beat the top three players in the sport back-to-back. He is more than within his right to aspire to the achievement; an competitor is meant to have faith in themselves. But entering that Djokovic last eight match who else sensibly had the lack of US winners in mind?

The American star's weaker delivery the sole barrier standing in her way and sustained success

Fritz, twenty-eight, is placed number four in the world starting the upcoming ATP World Tour Finals and has won his previous six encounters over No 3 Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. It's likely he could take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that is as far as he can rise: Sinner and Alcaraz sit a chasm of performance metrics away. His elite serve and powerful power on both forehand and reverse side are more than adequate to dispose of the majority of opponents on the ATP tour. Against the handful of once-in-a-lifetime players, however, Fritz is often helpless. The last several seasons has witnessed the curious emergence of tall, gangly athletes who can nevertheless cover the court with the surprising quickness and fluidity of smaller players. He is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His footwork is stiff, as if he hasn't fully adapted to his legs. So he seldom win a rally that the other player was controlling, and hitting a soft shot versus him is typically a reliable tactic. That serves as a quite harsh limitation on his upside.

The American has achieved a number of significant, unexpected improvements throughout his career. Early on of the decade, he was circling the lower end of the world's best thirty. Two years after, he was approaching the top 10. The previous season, he unexpectedly exploded up to fourth place – and maintained the spot. But the subsequent step, mixing it up with and defeating all-time-greats like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and including a aging Serbian, is the highest of all. What was Fowler thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was appropriate commenting on the ongoing drought of US male players lifting major titles when he had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is just excessive and the appreciation for the difficulty of the task too little.

Taylor Fritz made a career-best run to the All England Club last four in the summer.

Fritz’s performance in that very last eight match ought to have been enough of an indication. Djokovic won in four rounds, a victory that only felt uncertain for brief periods towards the very end, when the American had survived a couple match points and had a chance to maintain serve for 5-5. The duo appeared evenly matched during the exchanges, with Fritz earning plenty of chances to break. But Djokovic rescued break point after service break opportunity, extending 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 horrendous service game to drop serve once more; Djokovic had drawn him into a skirmish secondary to the main contest and compelled him to use excessive energy to win it. Down match points in the final game, Fritz’s first serve floated to heaven. He prolonged the contest twice on his backup delivery, but ultimately committed two errors. It was not a choke, in my opinion, just a result of needing to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The match was quite compelling proof that Fritz is insufficiently skilled to defeat any form of Djokovic, that lost to the Spaniard in the following match and did not particularly appeared like he believed he could win. This is absolutely fine – the Serbian is the best player ever, and might not be at the peak of his physical powers anymore, but has developed enough experience and tactical know-how to make up for a significant portion of the drop-off. The problem is the individuals who were anticipating the American to prevail, and pressuring him to achieve that, when he was had not done anything that indicated he could.

The American is an asset to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, thoughtful presence in press conferences, exceeding virtually everyone on the ATP aside from Daniil Medvedev, prepared to not only express how he feels or the strategy he felt determined a match, but clarify it. That he should bear the brunt of the blame for America failing to spawn a male major champion since Andy Roddick seems unjust. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the rankings, maybe they can divide that burden.)

ATP Finals: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Group

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

Bjorn Borg Division

• The Italian champion
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• Ben Shelton (US)
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably dwell on it indefinitely if I fail to accomplish it,” the American told a journalist in June of claiming a grand slam. I hope he realizes that he’s not a failure if he does not fulfill that goal, that overcoming Alcaraz and Sinner’s young, terrifying empire is in fact extremely unlikely for everybody else. {