5 milestones achieved by Taylor Fritz following his victory in Indian Wells
Taylor Fritz brought an end to Rafael Nadal's 20-match unbeaten run in 2022 with 6-3, 7-6 (5) win in the final of the 2022 Indian Wells Masters on Sunday. The win secured Fritz's first title of the year and the second of his career following his triumph at the 2019 Eastbourne International.
The first man to beat Rafael Nadal this year?
Taylor Fritz. https://t.co/9uV3U7XsEE
The title run comes on the back of a rather disappointing month in the American's career. The World No. 17 won only two out of his four matches and was displaced by Reilly Opelka as the No. 1 ranked American on the ATP tour.
Courtesy of his vanquishing of Nadal, the 24-year-old is guaranteed to reclaim that position and could even rise to a career-high World No. 13. Without further ado, here is a list of a few more milestones Taylor Fritz achieved on Sunday:
#1 Taylor Fritz became the first American to win Indian Wells since Andre Agassi in 2001
Taylor Fritz's victory at the 2022 Indian Wells Masters marks the first time a homegrown player has won the men's singles title in the desert in over two decades. The last time it happened was in 2001, when Andre Agassi defeated compatriot Pete Sampras in the final.
Californian Taylor Fritz is champion at Indian Wells, winning 6-3, 7-6(5) over Rafael Nadal, snapping Nadal’s 20-match win streak to start the season.
Fritz’s first Masters 1000 title is the first Indian Wells singles title for an American man or woman since 2001 (Agassi/Serena)
Since then, four Americans have reached the final - James Blake, Mardy Fish, Andy Roddick and John Isner. Blake and Isner fell to Roger Federer in the 2006 and 2012 finals, respectively. Fish was dwarfed by Novak Djokovic in 2008, while Roddick was bested by Ivan Ljubicic in 2010.
#2 Youngest man to win Indian Wells since Novak Djokovic in 2011
Taylor Fritz, at 24 years of age, also became the youngest man to win the Indian Wells Masters since Novak Djokovic did so in 2011 at the age of 23. In the nine years since then, the ATP 1000 event has been won thrice by Djokovic himself. Roger Federer won it twice (at 30 and 35 years of age) while Rafael Nadal triumphed once (at 26 years of age).
Youngest to win men’s singles title since Djokovic (2011)
✅Youngest to win men’s singles title since Djokovic (2011)
✅Youngest American to win men’s singles title since Chang (1996)
✅Youngest American to win Masters 1000 singles title since Roddick (2006)
#IndianWells https://t.co/aI2bv1E1Gk
The three other winners are Juan Martin del Potro (2018), Dominic Thiem (2019) and Cameron Norrie (2021). Del Potro was 30 years old when he won the title, while Thiem was 25 and Norrie was 26.
#3 Youngest American man to win Indian Wells since Michael Chang in 1996
Taylor Fritz's win in the 2022 edition made him the youngest American man to win at Indian Wells since the legendary Michael Chang in 1996. Chang also triumphed at the age of 24, and followed it up by winning the event the very next year.
After Chang's 1997 triumph, Andre Agassi was the only other American to lift the trophy at Indian Wells until Fritz. Agassi did so at the age of 30 in 2001. Prior to Chang, the youngest American to remain the last man standing in the desert was Pete Sampras, who won the 1994 edition at the age of just 22.
#4 Youngest American man to win a Masters 1000 singles title since Andy Roddick in 2006
Andy Roddick won the Cincinnati Masters in 2006, at the age of 23. Since then, only two other American men have managed to win a Masters 1000 title in singles. Jack Sock picked up the title at the 2017 Paris Masters while John Isner triumphed at the 2018 Miami Masters.
The 24-year-old Fritz is also the youngest man to win a title at Indian Wells since 23-year-old Novak Djokovic in 2011.
AND
The youngest American to win a Masters 1000 title since 23-year-old Andy Roddick at 2006 Cincinnati
Sock was 25 during his title run in Paris. Isner, on the other hand, was 32. This makes Taylor Fritz the youngest American man to win a Masters 1000 singles title since Roddick in 2006.
#5 First American man to win a Masters 1000 singles title since John Isner in 2018
Taylor Fritz also became the first American man to win a Masters 1000 title since John Isner in 2018. Isner won the Miami Masters in 2018 by defeating Alexander Zverev in the summit clash.
Welcome to the big-time Taylor Fritz. 24-year-old American from San Diego ends Nadal's unbeaten streak in 2022 with a 6-3 7-6 (5) victory in the @BNPPARIBASOPEN final
Biggest result by an American man since John Isner's Miami title in 2018. Fritz will be No. 13 on Monday
#getty https://t.co/HvDxiYQyFM
In the four years since then, only two Americans have reached the final at an ATP 1000 event. Isner himself reached the final in Miami the following year, but fell to Roger Federer. Reilly Opelka reached the final of the Toronto Masters in 2021, but was outclassed by Daniil Medvedev.