The American beat World No.7 Tsitsipas to reach his first Australian Open quarterfinal but awaiting him there is the best player in the world. Almost every American male player has a constant companion long before they make it big on the world stage — hype. The US media is quick to talk them up — they have all the shots, the style, the NCAA success but somehow the men have failed to win a Grand Slam for more than 20 years now.
Perhaps, they are still lacking something. Perhaps, they are lacking a lot of things. Either way, Taylor Fritz will hope to find the missing piece when he takes on the imperious Novak Djokovic in the quarterfinal of the Australian Open.
If Fritz can reproduce the kind of tennis he played to knock out World No.7 Stefano Tsitsipas on Sunday, one dare say he may even have a chance. The American made it to his first Australian Open quarterfinal with a 7-6(3), 5-7, 6-3, 6-3 win, his maiden win against a Top-10 player at a Major.
“I trusted my shots a lot. I served well the whole match,” Fritz said. “It kept me in it as there were some games he was in that I could get out of with my serve. At the end when I really needed it, I turned it up a level and played my absolute best tennis to finish it.”(HT)