Taylor Fritz Reveals How He Deals with Pressure of Ending American Men’s Grand Slam Drought

Taylor Fritz will lock horns with compatriot Ben Shelton in the semifinal of the Canadian Open.

Taylor Fritz Reveals How He Deals with Pressure of Ending American Men’s Grand Slam Drought

Taylor Fritz (Image via X/Jose Morgado)

🔍 Explore this post with:

ChatGPTPerplexityGrok AIGoogle AI

Taylor Fritz has dealt with the pressure of ending American men’s Grand Slam drought enough, and all he wants now is to win one of these four coveted titles for himself. Fritz is in Toronto for the Canadian Open.

He has made another stride toward lifting the title as he has reached the semi-final, where he will be up against compatriot Ben Shelton. In the previous round, he knocked out 2024 Canadian Open finalist Andrey Rublev in straight sets.

Before this season, the 27-year-old had never progressed beyond the third round of the Toronto Masters 1000. He is also bidding to claim a title in this category for the second time in his career after his victory over 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal in the 2022 Indian Wells final.

Fritz’s best performance in a Grand Slam event came in 2024 when he reached the championship clash of the US Open. But the American ace was no match for World No.1 Jannik Sinner, losing the final in straight sets.

After that final, Fritz’s campaign at Wimbledon this year was ended by five-time Grand Slam champion Carlos Alcaraz in the semifinals. Fritz, at the press conference following his quarterfinal win in Toronto, made it clear that he wants to win a Major not for others but only for himself.

I don’t feel any particular responsibility to do it. I also don’t think people are counting on me. I think all the pressure I feel is the pressure I put on myself. I’m a competitor, I’ve dedicated my whole life to tennis, and what I really want is to win a Grand Slam. So the pressure really comes from me wanting one, not from the outside.

Former World No.1 Andy Roddick is the last American man to win a Grand Slam title. Roddick made it to five Grand Slam finals and won the 2003 US Open by beating Juan Carlos Ferrero.

Taylor Fritz predicts a bright career for Victoria Mboko

Victoria Mboko is playing only her third WTA 1000 tournament and lo! she has booked a spot in the semifinal of the Canadian Open en route to which, she knocked out two-time Grand Slam singles champion Coco Gauff in the fourth round.

Victoria Mboko (2)
Victoria Mboko (Image via X/Team Canada)

In the quarterfinal, she eliminated Jessica Bouzas Maneiro to schedule her semifinal clash with 2022 Wimbledon champion Elena Rybakina. Although Taylor Fritz hasn’t followed her matches, he predicted that the 18-year-old has the talent to reach the top.

You said she’s 18? Yeah, she’s obviously a very good player. I haven’t gotten a chance to, I guess, see her game and watch her play, so I can’t really break it down for you. But just to have those results at a very young age, especially at home too, that’s a great feeling. But, yeah, I’m sure she’s moving in the right direction of being a top player.

Taylor Fritz said at the press conference

Fritz holds a 1-0 head-to-head lead over his semifinal opponent Ben Shelton. They previously met in the second round of the 2023 Indian Wells Masters. Shelton has never lifted a Masters 1000 title, and also reached a semifinal for the first time in his career in this category.

In his previous round, he knocked out Alex de Minaur in straight sets. If Fritz wins the match, he will next play first seed Alexander Zverev or Karen Khachanov.

Mboko, too, has met Rybakina only once- in this year’s Citi Open fourth round, which the Kazakh ace won in straight sets. The winner of this match will play either Clara Tauson or four-time Grand Slam champion Naomi Osaka in the championship clash.

Also read: Patrick Mouratoglou Believes That Carlos Alcaraz Does This Better Than Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic on the Court