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I have a few opinions about the remarks made by ESPN broadcaster Chris Fowler after the Serbian champion's win over Taylor Fritz in the New York major quarter-finals. Consider – Fritz is American, Fowler is from the US – and sports often lend themselves to patriotic sentiment. A little bit of letdown would have been understandable. Instead, Fowler invoked the continued drought of US male players at grand slam tournaments: not one of them has won a trophy since the last American champion in 2003, and he had been the last one standing in the tournament.

We all love a storyline, me too. But really. Suppose the American had beaten Djokovic for the initial occasion, phenomenal talent Carlos Alcaraz was waiting in the following match, who Fritz has yet to beat in an official match. And if he’d someway gotten past that, it would have been title holder Jannik Sinner, versus him Fritz had dropped 10 of the last 11 sets. The two young stars had also split the last seven major titles (plus the Spaniard went on to thrash a tired Djokovic in the next round). He said in press after the loss that he in fact liked his path, because it offered the chance to beat the three best competitors in the sport in succession. He is more than justified to aspire to the accomplishment; an competitor is supposed to believe in themselves. But going into that Serbian last eight match what other person in their right mind had the lack of American champions on the brain?

The American star's second serve the only thing between her and sustained success

Fritz, twenty-eight, is ranked fourth in the global rankings starting this week’s year-end championships and has won his previous six matches over No 3 Alexander Zverev with increasing ease. It's likely he could take that spot for himself in the future. But it’s clear that right now, that’s as high as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard sit a vast gap of ranking points away. Fritz’s top-class serve and powerful strength on both forehand and reverse side are more than enough to defeat the majority of opponents on the professional circuit. Against the select few generational talents, however, he is frequently overmatched. The last several seasons has witnessed the interesting rise of lanky, towering athletes who can nonetheless move around with the alarming quickness and fluidity of smaller players. Fritz is 6ft 5ins and appears that way. His footwork is rigid, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he’ll rarely win a rally that the opponent was dictating, and hitting a soft shot against him is typically a safe bet. That serves as a quite severe limitation on his potential.

The American has made a several dramatic, unexpected improvements throughout his career. Early on of the ten-year period, he was circling the bottom of the top 30. Two years later, he was approaching the top 10. The previous season, he unexpectedly surged to fourth place – and maintained the position. But the next leap, mixing it up with and defeating legendary figures like Alcaraz, the Italian, and even a declining Djokovic, is the toughest of all. What could the commentator have been thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a legitimate contender to beat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the continuing slump of American men lifting major titles when he had exited the US Open in the quarter-finals? The thirst is just excessive and the appreciation 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 performance in that very last eight match should have been enough of an indication. Djokovic triumphed in four sets, a victory that only seemed uncertain for moments towards the conclusion, when the American had saved a few match points and had a chance to hold for 5-5. The pair appeared evenly matched during the exchanges, with Fritz creating plenty of chances to break. But Djokovic rescued break point after service break opportunity, extending the run to the brink of agony. When Fritz finally did convert one of the opportunities at 5-5 in the second set, he immediately played a terrible service game to lose his own serve again; the Serbian had drawn him into a battle secondary to the main contest and compelled him to expend far too much effort to prevail. Down match points in the final game, Fritz’s first serve sailed to the sky. He prolonged the match two times on his second serve, but finally double-faulted. It wasn’t a collapse, I didn’t think, just a result of having to hit an excessive number of weaker deliveries.

The contest was fairly compelling proof that Fritz is not good enough to defeat any form of the Serbian, that was defeated by the Spaniard in the next round and never particularly seem like he thought he could win. This is perfectly acceptable – the Serbian is the greatest of all time, and might not be at the peak of his physical powers now, but has acquired enough experience and strategic intelligence to compensate for quite a bit of the decline. The issue is those who were expecting the American to win, and pressuring him to do so, when he was had not accomplished anything that suggested he would.

Fritz is an asset to the circuit regardless. He’s a calm, reflective presence in press conferences, exceeding virtually everyone on the men's tour aside from the Russian star, willing to not just express his emotions or the tactic he felt determined a contest, but clarify it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the blame for America not spawn a men's grand slam winner since the last American titlist seems unfair. (Since the fellow American is rubbing shoulders with him in the standings, maybe they can divide that burden.)

Year-End Championships: Player Divisions

Jimmy Connors Division

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

Bjorn Borg Division

• Jannik Sinner (It)
• Alexander Zverev (Ger)
• The rising American
• The Canadian talent

“I’d probably dwell on it indefinitely if I fail to do it,” Fritz told a journalist in the summer of winning a grand slam. It is hoped 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 in fact extremely improbable for all other players. {