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I have a few opinions regarding the remarks delivered by the sports network commentator Chris Fowler following the Serbian champion's win over Taylor Fritz during the New York major last eight. Consider – the athlete represents the United States, Fowler is American – and sports frequently lend themselves to nationalism. A little bit of disappointment was understandable. Rather, Fowler brought up the ongoing absence of US male players at grand slam tournaments: none of them has won a trophy since Andy Roddick in 2003, and Fritz had been the final representative in the competition.

We all enjoy a narrative, me too. But come on. Suppose Fritz defeated Djokovic for the initial occasion, force of nature Carlos Alcaraz was looming in the next round, who he has never defeated in an competitive encounter. And had he someway survived that, it would have been title holder the Italian, against whom the American had lost 10 of the last 11 sets. The two young stars had also divided the last seven major titles (and Alcaraz went on to thrash a fatigued Djokovic in the next round). He said in press following his defeat that he actually liked his draw, because it presented the opportunity to beat the three best competitors in the world in succession. He is more than justified to aspire to the achievement; an competitor is supposed to have faith in themselves. But going into that Serbian last eight match what other person in their right mind had the drought of American champions on the brain?

Coco Gauff’s second serve the only thing standing in her way and consistent victories

Fritz, 28, is placed number four in the global rankings starting this week’s year-end championships and has secured his previous six matches over third-ranked Alexander Zverev with growing comfort. It's likely he could claim that position for himself in the future. But it’s clear that at present, that’s as high as he can rise: The Italian and Spaniard lie a vast gap of ranking points away. His elite delivery and concussive power on each forehand and reverse side are sufficiently enough to defeat the majority of rivals on the professional circuit. When facing the select few once-in-a-lifetime players, however, Fritz is often helpless. The past few years has seen 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 movement is stiff, as if he’s still getting used to his limbs. So he’ll rarely steal a point that the opponent was controlling, and playing a drop shot against him is typically a safe bet. That acts as a pretty harsh limitation on his upside.

Fritz has achieved a several significant, unexpected improvements over the years. Early on of the decade, he was circling the lower end of the top 30. Two years after, he was approaching the top 10. Last year, he suddenly surged to fourth place – and maintained the spot. But the next leap, competing against and beating legendary figures like the young Spaniard, the Italian, and even a aging Serbian, is the toughest of all. What could Fowler thinking? That the American, in 2025, was a serious threat to defeat them all back-to-back? That it was worth commenting on the ongoing drought of American men lifting grand slams when he had departed the US Open in the quarter-finals? The desperation is simply too much and the respect for the difficulty of the challenge too little.

The American star made a personal best run to the Wimbledon semi-finals in the summer.

The American's performance in that very quarter-final should have been sufficient of an indication. The Serbian won in four rounds, a victory that only seemed tenuous for moments towards the very end, when the American had saved a couple match points and had a opportunity to maintain serve for 5-5. The pair appeared evenly matched during the rallies, with Fritz earning plenty of chances to win the opponent's serve. But the champion rescued service break opportunity after break point, extending the streak to the point of frustration. When he eventually did claim one of the chances at 5-5 in the middle stanza, he promptly produced a terrible service game to lose his own serve once more; Djokovic had lulled him into a battle peripheral to the real battle and forced him to expend excessive effort to prevail. Facing set points in the final game, his primary delivery floated to heaven. He prolonged the match two times on his backup delivery, but finally committed two errors. It was not a collapse, I didn’t think, just a result of having to hit too many second serves.

The match was fairly ironclad evidence that the American is insufficiently skilled to defeat any version of the Serbian, that lost to the Spaniard in the next round and did not especially seem like he thought he could win. This is absolutely fine – the Serbian is the best player ever, and might not be at the peak of his athletic abilities anymore, but has developed enough knowledge and strategic intelligence to compensate for a significant portion of the decline. The problem is those who were expecting the American to prevail, and pressuring him to do so, when he was yet to done anything that indicated he could.

Fritz is an asset to the tour regardless. He’s a calm, reflective voice in press conferences, exceeding virtually anyone on the men's tour except for the Russian star, prepared to not just express his emotions or the strategy he felt decided a contest, but explain it. That he ought to bear the brunt of the blame for America not spawn a men's grand slam winner since Andy Roddick seems unjust. (Since the fellow American is competing alongside him in the standings, perhaps they can share that load.)

ATP Finals: Singles Groups

American legend Division

• The Spanish phenom
• Taylor Fritz (US)
• Alex de Minaur (Aus)
• The Italian stylist

Bjorn Borg Group

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

“I’d probably think about it forever if I don’t do it,” Fritz told an interviewer in the summer of claiming a major. I hope he understands that he’s not a failure if he does not fulfill that objective, that overcoming the Spanish and Italian's dominant, formidable empire is in fact highly unlikely for all other players. {