SPOTLIGHT: Taylor Fritz’s Rally for the US

This is an article “SPOTLIGHT: Taylor Fritz’s Rally for the US” by Marc Pulisci

After winning this year's BNP Paribas Open, top-rank American tennis superstar Taylor Fritz has announced that he will be skipping his fourth main draw at the Rome Masters. Currently ranked at number 13 by the ATP, Fritz surprised both sports analysts and fans when the 24-year-old defeated the legendary Rafael Nadal at the Indian Wells finals. Before this, he reached the semifinal round of the same tournament a year ago but lost to Georgian Nikoloz Basilashvili, who shattered his dreams for his first ATP Tour win.

This year, the rising young star is all set to prove his mettle on the court, but many are inclined to ask: can Taylor Fritz really bring back tennis glory to the U.S.?

A blooming career

In recent years, Fritz made a gallant effort to reach the Rome Masters' main draw, particularly in 2016 and 2018 but ended up being defeated during qualifying events. In 2019, he debuted at the celebrated tournament at Foro Italico by beating Guido Pella of Argentina in the first round. Unfortunately, the American star was knocked off when he faced Kei Nishikori of Japan in the subsequent round.

The following year, he made the main draw directly for the first time in his young career, only to fall in the first round at the hands of Italy's Stefano Travaglia. 2021 wasn't as lucky for Fritz either, who faced the then world number 1, Novak Djokovic, after a good showing against Dan Evans of the U.K. in the opening round.

Fast forward to this year, at the BNP Paribas Open, where Fritz shocked everyone by not only defeating one of today's most titled legends in the sport, Rafael Nadal but ended his perfect season early in the year.

A match for the books

Fritz displayed an aggressive performance against the Spanish champion and powered through two sets, 6-3, 7-6(5), to claim his first ATP Masters 1000 and second ATP Tour titles. From the get-go, the American shocked Nadal with an all-out attack that denied the Spaniard his 37th ATP Masters 1000 championship, not to mention an impressive 20-match winning streak.

The match started with a fast and furious flurry of back and forths. There was no question that Nadal was ready to play. But this didn't deter Fritz from going ahead 4-0 and eventually winning the opener at 6-3. Nadal soon took a medical timeout between sets which helped the Spaniard stay in pace with the young American by set two.

Through extended rallies and fabulous baseline footwork, Nadal seemed to be getting his groove, only to be backtracked by Fritz. The latter tied it at 2-2 after four breakpoints and displayed more resilience as they reached another tie at 4-4. Nadal secured the championship point at 4-5 after an exciting tie-breaker game, but Fritz had other things in mind, mainly staying aggressive and finally ending the match with a powerful serve-forehand combo at 7-6(5).

A hint of things to come

The San Diego native nearly pulled out of his final match against Nadal. Since his semifinal match against top Russian contender Andrey Rublev, an ankle injury had been bothering him. But determination prevailed as the young pro was adamant about not missing one of the most important matches of his career. Many fans were worried after seeing Fritz injure his ankle during his match against Rublev and hearing how he made it worse during warmups leading up to the final match.

However, youth has its own advantages, as the young star himself couldn't believe how he pulled a title off Nadal's hands. He told reporters that his injury didn't affect his footwork during the match. However, Fritz admitted he had been training through the pain before playing in one of the biggest matches of his career. It was 'one of the worst,' he said, but he was still able to stay resilient throughout the aggressive match.

Holding back his tears as he accepted the trophy, Fritz told the BNP Paribas crowd that winning a trophy for his hometown Southern California was his childhood dream. A feat that entailed lots of hard work and strenuous training, plus the added emotional factors of facing one of the greatest players of all time.

There was even a point prior to the finals wherein his team advised him to pull out from his match against Nadal. He had further aggravated his ankle injury during a second warmup session which prompted his coaches and fitness trainer to talk him into sitting it out. But Fritz felt confident and said he wanted to see if he had what it takes to face Nadal. And he did.

For the rest of the year, the young champion faces the daunting task of capturing a men's grand slam title that had eluded the U.S. for nearly twenty years. The drought goes as far back as 2003, when Andy Roddick won the U.S. Open title. After his win at Indian Wells, Fritz tried adjusting his footwork on clay surfaces in preparation for the French Open. Fritz had earlier said he preferred acrylic hard courts like the one at the Australian Open over other court surfaces.

He kicked off his clay tour in Houston and reached as far as the quarterfinals. The problem is that his ankle injury further hounded the star and made him pull out of back-to-back Masters and the Madrid Open last April 26 to May 8.

If his performance in Monte Carlo told us anything, fans can expect Fritz to participate and give a good showing at the ongoing French Open. The American reached the quarterfinals in Monte Carlo before being defeated by another Spaniard, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, who eventually reached the finals. With how Fritz adjusted to clay courts during his stint at Monte Carlo, many can expect that this year can still be an excellent year for the rising American star despite his ankle injury. Aside from becoming a Masters titleholder, he is on the threshold of breaking into the ATP top 10 if he maintains his aggressive performance. Many will surely be watching him at the French Open and then compare how he constantly improves when Wimbledon and the U.S. Open go in full swing later this year.