It was impressive to see Taylor Fritz become the first American man in more than 15 years to reach the singles final of a major. Fritz’s run to the US Open final included tight, four-set wins over Casper Ruud and Alexander Zverev.
But those efforts took a backseat to Fritz’s semifinal victory over Frances Tiafoe.
In his debut Slam semi, down two sets to one versus an impassioned opponent who’d previously reached that stage, all of Fritz’s hard work and tenacity paid off as he snapped open the fourth set and then sprinted through the decider, 6-1. Two months later, Fritz also went the distance at the ATP Finals, along the way beating Zverev and Daniil Medvedev.
That made him the first American to go that far since James Blake’s run in 2006.
Frustrating as it surely was to have lost both of those finals to Sinner in straight sets, the fourth-ranked Fritz feels exceptionally enthused. Though he’d briefly cracked the top five in early ’23, finishing so high at year’s end means much more.
“I feel like I belong,” said Fritz during the ATP Finals. “It’s a different feeling. It’s been a great year. That gives me a lot of confidence to have that belief. That’s a huge part of having the big results. The goals I set for myself at the start of the year was to finish top five.”
Dare I say that Fritz’s transition game might improve if he played more doubles?
