World No. 12 Taylor Fritz is having himself quite the year.
Fritz advanced to the fourth round of the 2024 U.S. Open on Friday after reaching the quarterfinal at the Australian Open, the fourth round at the French Open and the quarters again at Wimbledon.
By reaching at least the Round of 16 in all four majors of 2024, Fritz officially became the most consistent American men’s player since Andre Agassi.
“It’s a pretty cool thing for me to do,” Fritz said of his achievement via the New York Post. “Just last year, I was really struggling with Grand Slam results… It’s nice to do a lot better in something I put a lot of emphasis on, which was performing at Grand Slams and performing at the biggest tournament.”
Fritz has yet to drop a set at the 2024 U.S. Open, registering three consecutive straight-set wins over Argentina’s Camilo Ugo, Italy’s Matteo Berrettini and Argentina’s Francisco Comesana in the first three rounds. He will face Norway’s Casper Ruud in the fourth round on Sunday.
If Fritz can overcome World No. 8 Ruud — a 2022 U.S. Open finalist — in the fourth round, he’d inch a win closer to ending a 21-year drought for American men at Flushing Meadows. No American male has triumphed at Arthur Ashe Stadium since Andy Roddick won the U.S. Open crown in 2003.
Last year, Ben Shelton was two wins away until he lost to Novak Djokovic in the semifinal.
Fritz realizes he carries the weight of a nation entering the contest against Ruud, who beat him in four sets in the fourth round at Roland Garros earlier this year.
“To beat the top guys, you’re not gonna get by if you’re just playing average level. Time to really raise the level,” he said ahead of the rematch with Ruud.
Besides Fritz, other Americans who are still alive in the men’s draw include Tommy Paul, Brandon Nakashima and Frances Tiafoe. Could one of the four end the 21-year wait? With Novak Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz eliminated, a golden opportunity awaits.
