Taylor Fritz matches best US Open result ever by stomping Casper Ruud

Let's throw out the first set in which Casper Ruud defeated Taylor Fritz 6-3 at the 2024 US Open. Ruud is a fine player and capable of excellence, but he is more of a clay-court master than a hard-court specialist. Fritz, on the other hand, is becoming more and more excellent on all surfaces, though not yet ready to be elite.

The Americans' best result ever at the US Open so far is the quarterfinals. That happened in 2023. To be clear, the same result has happened again in 2024 as well. After dropping the first set, Fritz cleaned up his unforced errors, became far more efficient, and used his serve to overpower Ruud.

This kept getting better throughout the match. After taking a 3-love lead in the fourth set, Fritz did not lose a point in his next two service games. Moreover, he rarely had a ball returned when his first serve landed in. He was playing an elite level of tennis that would have given any player issues.

Taylor Fritz destroys Casper Ruud in the fourth round of the 2024 US Open

That is the key here. Gone from the US Open are Carlos Alcaraz and Novak Djokovic. Top-seed and ATP No. 1 Jannik Sinner is playing exceptional tennis so far in the tournament, but Fritz, who is at his best when he plays on a fast surface, has the ability to defeat any opponent. The last time an American won the US Open was in 2003 when Andy Roddick took home the trophy.

Fritz cannot be discounted from becoming an American hero should he play his next few matches as well as he did against the solid Ruud. Efficiency and not beating himself are the key. Fritz proved he can do that against the Norwegian; he just needs to replicate that moving forward.

Next up for Fritz will either be Alexander Zverev, who is playing extremely good tennis currently, or fellow American Brandon Nakashima. The New York crowd will be behind Fritz should he play Zverev. Should he play Nakashima, all bets are off.

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