"Tennis is a 365-day job and you can't live on just one result. That result, no matter how great, is now over. American men players need to start moving forward as they have done and prove that they deserve that semifinal and final every time they step out on the court and play."
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This is the thought of the legendary American Jimmy Connors, who, in his Advantage Connors podcast, analyzed how Carlitos Alcaraz could have been in the semifinal of Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe. But if the young Spaniard failed to qualify, it is Carlos' fault, not the two Americans, as Jimmy explained, who claims that his two countrymen were ready and prepared to reach the historic semifinal of the US Open.
"Alcaraz could have been there. He lost. It's not their fault. If he doesn't make it, it's not their problem, but they were prepared and they played the kind of tennis that was needed to get there, which is great. We haven't had a men's champion since Andy Roddick in 2003. It's been a while since two Americans have been in a Slam semifinal. For two Americans to be in the semifinals was pretty emotional and it shows that when you stay there, you keep trying, you keep practicing, you keep working, you keep sacrificing and you keep doing what's best to try to get better every day, good things happen," explained Connors.
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Fritz, in his first career Slam final, was defeated in straight sets by Jannik Sinner, who won the US Open for the first time in his young career. Fritz did not hide his great disappointment in the press conference for this defeat. It was the first time since 2009 that an American tennis player had not reached a Major final, in the men's singles.
"It was a very difficult match for me. I had a plan of what I wanted to do, but a lot of parts didn't go well. I didn't hit the ball as well as I expected. I improved my serve a lot in the second set, in the first I struggled with that, in the third everything started to go right, I improved with my forehand and I put myself in a good position to win it, but he came back and closed it out. If my plan A doesn't work, I go to plan B, which is to play a little more confidently. It works against most players but it doesn't work against Jannik."
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Reporters had asked him if the five-set semifinal win against Tiafoe could have had an impact on his performance in the final.
"I don't think it had any impact. You can't be fresh in a Slam final after winning 6 matches but I felt good. I have to say that Sinner has improved a lot since I beat him in straight sets in Indian Wells 2021. I would say that his big improvement was his serve. There are a lot of positive things to take away and when I take some time I will be happy to have reached the final. At the moment I am quite disappointed with how things went on the court, how I behaved and how I played. I would have liked to play better, to give myself a better opportunity. I feel that the Americans wanted a champion who has been missing for a long time. I am very sad about the way I played. It is as if I have disappointed people. Although the most important thing is that I played well. It is extremely comforting to have reached this point playing well. I know that there is a lot of room for improvement," he analyzed.
