"Exhibition or ATP event, I'm going to be trying to win it" - Taylor Fritz ahead of Diriyah Tennis Cup final against Daniil Medvedev
Taylor Fritz is in it to win it. After reaching the final of the Diriyah Tennis Cup, an exhibition tournament in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, on Friday, the American no. 1 declared that he aims to play his best tennis and win the title at every tournament he competes in, be it an ATP event or an exhibition.
Fritz beat Cameron Norrie 7-6(4), 4-6, 10-6 to set up a clash against Daniil Medvedev in the Diriyah Tennis Cup final on Saturday. Despite having an intense season on tour, during which he even played in the Davis Cup Finals just a couple of weeks ago, Fritz decided to get some more match time under his belt at the Saudi event.
Despite being an exhibition event with no ranking points or ATP status, 25-year-old Taylor Fritz is quite keen on clinching the title on Saturday.
"Anytime I go to an event, exhibition or ATP event, or whatever, if I show up to an event, then I'm going to be trying to win it," Fritz said in his on-court interview after the semifinal win against Norrie.
Earlier, the California native beat Hubert Hurkacz in straight sets in his quarterfinal match at the Diriyah Tennis Cup.
The 2022 season has comfortably been the best of Fritz's career so far as he won three titles, including a Masters 1000 title, and also made his top-10 debut. He ended the season inside the top 10 and reached the last four of the ATP Finals. A feature of Fritz's tennis all season has been his aggressive approach and willingness to take risks and go for his shots. His approach against Norrie reflected the same.
"I think playing Cam is tough because you do have to be patient. But the second I get the opportunity to go for a shot, I have to go for it with him because he always moves me around a lot and he will beat me to the punch if I am too patient," Fritz said.
Taylor Fritz will be "very dangerous" at Australian Open 2023, believes John Millman
Aussie star John Millman has backed Taylor Fritz along with Nick Kyrgios and Hubert Hurkacz to come good at the 2023 Australian Open.
Millman recently practiced with the Dunlop tennis balls that will be used at the Australian Open and as per his initial assessment of how the ball played on his racquet, Millman feels the trio will be the 'players to watch out for' at the Melbourne Grand Slam next month.
"Having hit with the AO 2023 Dunlop balls the last week, my general observation is they are light and quick, especially when new. Not the easiest to control initially, even in the humid conditions where I am in Brisbane. NK [Nick Kyrgios], Hurkacz, Fritz all very dangerous this AO," Millman wrote on Twitter.
Taylor Fritz has not gone past the fourth round of the Australian Open on seven previous occasions. His best result there was a Round of 16 appearance this year, where he lost to Stefanos Tsitsipas in a five-set thriller. Earlier in the tournament, he beat the likes of Frances Tiafoe and Roberto Bautista Agut.