"The mental coping was 'Every time I was in QFs I played Novak Djokovic'": Taylor Fritz on 'protecting his ego' whenever compatriots reached Major SFs
Taylor Fritz opened up about how he used to cope mentally whenever he would see compatriots Tommy Paul and Frances Tiafoe reaching Major semifinals while he himself could not. The World No. 12 said that he would tell himself that he played Novak Djokovic every time he reached the quarterfinals.
Fritz reached his very first Grand Slam semifinal at the US Open after beating fourth seed Alexander Zverev at the Arthur Ashe Stadium on Tuesday, September 3.
The American clinched the first set via a tiebreak but the German stormed back into the contest by winning the second 6-3. Over the next two sets though, Fritz was dominant and ultimately registered a 7-6(2), 3-6, 6-4, 7-6(2) win to book his place in the final four.
At his post-match press conference, the 26-year-old was asked how he felt in the past when compatriots and good friends Tommy Paul and Frances Tiafoe reached Major semifinals. The 26-year-old said that he was always excited for them, but to protect his own ego, he would tell himself that his own quarterfinal losses came against Novak Djokovic.
"I was always happy for them (Tiafoe and Paul, when they reached semifinals at Majors), honestly, like, pumped for them. I think the mental coping that I was doing for it was, 'Well, every time I was in the quarters I played Djokovic.' That was my way to just protect my ego, but then I got a look at Wimbledon where I didn't play Novak in a quarter," Fritz said (6:37).
The World No. 12 went on to say that he stopped using the coping mechanism following his loss to Lorenzo Musetti at this year's Wimbledon Championships. Fritz added that seeing his compatriots reaching Major semifinals always made him happy for them and also gave him belief that he too, could do it one day.
"I guess my three quarters before were Novak, Novak and Rafa, and so then I got one where I played Musetti and he outplayed me and I lost and that's when I was like, 'Okay, that excuse doesn't quite work out anymore.' But no, it was always just genuinely like really happy for my friends to see them have big success, and if anything, it always gave me the confidence that I can do it too," the 26-year-old said.
At Grand Slams, Taylor Fritz has clashed with Djokovic on three separate occasions, with two of them coming in the quarterfinals. All of those clashes went in the Serb's favor.
Taylor Fritz has never got the better of Novak Djokovic at Majors; American lost to Serb in last year's US Open QF
At Grand Slams, Taylor Fritz has so far faced Novak Djokovic thrice. The pair's first meeting at a Major came in the third round of the 2021 Australian Open. On that occasion, Fritz went toe-to-toe with the Serb in what turned out to be a five-set epic, but ultimately, it was Djokovic who held on for the win.
Their next Grand Slam face-off was in the quarterfinals of the 2023 US Open. This time around, it was a straightforward 6-1, 6-4, 6-4 win for the Serb, who would then go on to win his 24th Major.
Fritz and Djokovic clashed again in the quarterfinals at this year's Australian Open. While the American yet again gave a good account of himself, it wasn't quite enough as the former World No. 1 emerged victorious after four sets.
In the semifinals of the ongoing US Open, Taylor Fritz will face either compatriot Tiafoe or Grigor Dimitrov.