Tennis News: Taylor Fritz's disappointment and Novak Djokovic's chances

Taylor Fritz has normally been the highest-ranked American for the last few years. Every so often, a player such as Frances Tiafoe will pass him by, but Fritz is the most consistent player Americans have, and he has the most upside due to his bombastic serve and ability to move around the court well.

Fritz has never been able to maintain as high of a level of fantastic tennis as have players such as Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, or even Daniil Medvedev. Fritz has approved on clay courts, but he doesn't feel like a real threat to win the French Open. At least he did finally reach a Grand Slam final for the first time in his career when he lost to Sinner at the US Open.

Fritz had higher hopes for the match against the Italian even though the American was playing the No. 1 player in the world who had won the Australian Open earlier in 2024. Some players might have just been happy to make the final, but not Fritz. And, to be fair, that is the sign of a player who is never going to discount himself against anyone.

Taylor Fritz talks about his US Open disappointment and Novak Djokovic has a chance at the ATP Finals

Speaking with the ATP's official website, Fritz spoke about the disappointment he felt by not playing better against Sinner. He said, "There’s a lot of positives, but I don’t think the disappointment will ever necessarily go away. It’s not disappointment about losing, it’s disappointment about just believing or wishing that I would’ve just played a better match if I lost."

A player who does know how to win Grand Slams is Novak Djokovic. He has a men's record 24 major titles. He also has the most ATP Finals wins after getting his seventh last year. He has been open about not being driven to make the ATP Finals this year, though. He wants to play fewer tournaments overall and does not care so much about his ranking anymore.

Currently, in the Race to Turin, Djokovic at number nine which is a spot out of where he needs to be unless another player drops out. Still, he has a decent chance of getting enough points to jump back into the top eight. If he does well at the Shanghai Masters and Paris Masters in October (and into early November), and current No. 8 Alex de Minaur cannot play due to an injury, the Serb will pass the Australian.

The question is whether Djokovic will choose to play in Turin if he does qualify. He wants to focus more on the Davis Cup and spending time with his family. He might simply pass on going to Turin.

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