Finally, Taylor Fritz Forces His Way Into the Top 10

“Obviously, I was happy for my friend; I think Frances deserved it,” Fritz said. “Over the years, he’s lost so many tight matches with top players that it was finally time for him to start winning those and go on a run, but at the same time I’m watching it, and it killed me. I felt like I should be there, too. I felt like my draw was good. I just had a shocking day.”

Fritz quickly returned for team competition in Europe last month: helping the U.S. qualify for the Davis Cup final phase and then helping Team World defeat Team Europe for the first time in the Laver Cup, the event cocreated by Roger Federer that also served as his emotional retirement vehicle. In Federer’s last official match, he and his doubles partner, Nadal, were beaten by Sock and Tiafoe. Fritz said he was angry that his teammates received so much criticism on social media for playing at full throttle.

“I definitely cried a lot more than I thought I was going to,” he said of Federer’s farewell. “But I was pretty upset to see how much hate Frances and Jack got for winning the match and Frances got for hitting Roger or hitting the ball at Rafa at net. This is not an exhibition. We are playing for a lot and for a lot of money. It bothered me a lot because I know Roger would have absolutely hated it if they just gave it to him.”

Team World celebrated late into the night in London, and Fritz then caught a 12-hour flight to Seoul, only to test positive for Covid-19 the day after arrival, which kept him out of the Seoul tournament and left him with a spiking fever and sore throat despite being double vaccinated and boosted.

Fritz was eventually able to start working out in his hotel room in Seoul: pedaling on a stationary bike and even bench pressing his girlfriend, Morgan Riddle, who had also tested positive for Covid, as she stretched out on her side in a bathrobe to turn herself into the equivalent of a barbell.

Fritz soon returned to more conventional training methods and the tennis court in Tokyo: winning in three sets in the first round over James Duckworth after going a week without hitting a ball. Fritz then guaranteed his top-10 spot by beating Denis Shapovalov in another three-setter in the semifinals before defeating Tiafoe, 7-6 (3), 7-6 (2).

Article source: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/10/11/sports/tennis/taylor-fritz-atp.html