“It’s been an amazing year for Taylor. To finish four in the world is pretty spectacular,” said the American sensation’s coach Paul Annacone. Taylor Fritz‘s 2024 season has been nothing short of a dream run. Apart from claiming his best-ever ATP ranking of No.4 and reaching the final of ATP Finals in Turin, last month, the 27-year-old also made it to his first-ever Grand Slam final, at the US Open in September. He missed out on creating history, after losing to World No.1 Jannik Sinner, but he can still make it happen soon, according to a prominent tennis influencer.

For the unversed, American legend Andy Roddick was the last player to win a men’s singles title at a Grand Slam, over two decades ago. Back in 2003, at the US Open, he beat Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-3, 7-6(2), 6-3. Since then, no American player in men’s singles category has clinched a Grand Slam. Taylor Fritz made it to the title clash against Sinner in September at the Flushing Meadows. However, the Italian proved too much for him and took the championship 6-3, 6-4, 7-5 in straight sets. But Fritz’s meteoric rise in 2024 has escalated hopes among those who think he can end America’s 21-year-old Grand Slam drought. Tennis influencer Rachel Stuhlmann has now made a wild claim regarding Fritz ahead of 2025.

In an episode of Tennis Channel Inside-In podcast, dated December 19, host and former American pro Brad Gilbert asked Rachel “can we maybe get that first slam in 21 years sometime soon?” Rachel confidently said, “Yeah. Well, Taylor Fritz has come pretty close, I would say. I think that he’s just really, really stepped up on behalf of the Americans.” She praised Taylor’s remarkable performance in 2024 season while making a bold claim. “So I do have a good feeling that it could potentially happen soon,” she said while claiming that Fritz might win a Slam for American very soon.

Taylor’s relentless efforts to become better have been visible throughout this season. And who can notice them more than his coach. According to Paul Annacone, Fritz’s itch to improve himself in 2024 has led to his amazing run before the new season.

Paul Annacone praises Taylor Fritz’s fighting spirit and zeal to reach the top spot

In an interview with Tennis Channel Inside In podcast, dated November 21, Paul mentioned his honest thoughts on Fritz’s 2024 season. Commending the young star, he said, “It’s been an amazing year for Taylor. To finish four in the world is pretty spectacular, and the way to do it, especially playing so well with the top eight players in the world and getting to the finals, and having two huge wins over Medvedev and Zverev to get there, let alone Alex demon or, it’s just an amazing cap to a wonderful year of a lot of hard work.”

He emphasized on how Taylor has grown both as a player and a person. “When you listen to him talk now, you can hear that it’s a different Taylor Fritz,” he said. “He understands so much more about himself and his game. That when he’s in these moments, he actually believes he’s got a really good chance, and he doesn’t have to play better than he is,” he added.

Moreover, Paul also gave a huge credit to Taylor Fritz’s current team, saying, “I’ve been really lucky. I started my relationship with Taylor, with David Nankin, who did so many great years of building a foundation with Taylor. Nanks really helped me get up to speed and then get very involved in what was going on. And now, you know, I’ve been very fortunate to be involved with Michael Russell and Wolfgang Oswald.”

It will be interesting to see whether Fritz can continue his amazing momentum in 2025 as well. He would like to prove his mettle at the first Major of next season in Australia. This year when he played in the event, the American managed to reach the QF round. However, he couldn’t get past Serbia’s Novak Djokovic who beat him 7-6, 4-6, 6-2, 6-3. Will Taylor improve his record this time and end America’s two-decade long wait? What do you think?