Peter Bodo: I’m bullish on Taylor Fritz, and have been impressed for a long time by his degree of maturity and dedication to his craft. Early stardom (Fritz made the Memphis final at age 18 in 2016, in just his second ATP event) did not knock him for a loop. He has worked hard and made steady progress in the rankings, then finally cracked the Top 10 this year on the strength of amazing performances at two big events, the Indian Wells Masters 1000 and the Tokyo ATP 500.
Two things held Fritz back until he began his current push in fall 2021. First, he was overly conscious of his ranking, which led him to play too passively against less lower-ranked rivals. He also did not exploit the potential of his forehand as a weapon. If those shortcomings have been eliminated for good, his complete game, world-class power and drive will enable him to contend at majors.