Taylor Fritz: Grand Slam victory not an issue, but the top 10
Taylor Fritz spoke ahead of Washington's ATP 500 event about his near-term goals for the upcoming North American swing. The American is currently focusing on one milestone in particular.
by Michael Rothschädl
last edit: Aug 05, 2022, 05:37 pm
Taylor Fritz has had two very special experiences with Rafael Nadal in 2022. Which the 24-year-old will certainly not forget so quickly - and which could not be more different in terms of emotional states for the American. First the positive memories: the American's first ATP Masters 1000 title win at the home event in Indian Wells. And now the bad: the quarter-final defeat in Wimbledon against Rafael Nadal.
Although the 24-year-old could clearly see that this defeat will most likely have an effect for some time to come, the American drew a positive balance at Wimbledon from a distance: "I felt really good, I played a pretty good match. It There are a few things I could do better but after having my foot in a splint for two weeks and not attacking the racquet too much I have to be pretty happy with how I felt and how I played." said Fritz in the run-up to the ATP 500 event in Washington.
Fritz with foot problems
Despite reaching the quarter-finals in Wimbledon - and the tough fight against an ailing Rafael Nadal - the American does not see himself among the extended circle of favorites at the last major event of the year: "I'm not thinking of even remotely winning the US Open . Right now I'm concentrating on finishing in the top 10. I'm just one strong result away," explained Fritz. "I want to stay in a very good place in the Race (to Turin), at the moment I'm number 9. I don't think much about the US Open, I'll try to get good results in the next tournaments."
In the past few weeks, Fritz has been far more concerned with his stubborn foot injury than the defeat against Rafael Nadal, as he explained: "I didn't think much about the result in Wimbledon or about the match. The hardest thing was to come back and find out that the situation with my foot has worsened," explained the 24-year-old. "I thought he had healed but everything turned around and I found out what I had: I had a stress fracture in my foot. I've been trying for weeks to find out when I can play and train again." But now, Fritz says, he feels good and ready to make things happen in the United States.
In the short term, this has not yet borne fruit - Taylor Fritz also had to give up due to injury in the third set of the ATP 500 event in Washington in a duel with Dan Evans from Great Britain.