Taylor Fritz fell to the ground and put his hands on his head as he lay outstretched. He had just defeated Rafael Nadal in the final at the 2022 BNP Paribas Open in Indian Wells, California.
Moments later, he cried as the crowd roared with admiration.
“Winning this tournament is one of those crazy childhood dreams that you really think is never going to happen,” he said as tears streamed down his face.
It was the biggest victory in Fritz’s career, propelling him to a then-career-high ranking of No. 13 and cementing his spot as the top-ranked American man. He told reporters later that afternoon that sharing the court with Nadal, let alone beating him, was “insane” and that his new goal was to reach the top 10.
That was three years ago. And since then, Fritz has done that and more. Much more, in fact.
Prior to the Indian Wells victory, he had never advanced beyond the fourth round at a major, but he has now appeared in five Grand Slam quarterfinals — and reached the final at the US Open in September. Not to mention, he has won six additional tour titles, played in the final at the 2024 ATP Finals, earned Olympic bronze at the 2024 Paris Games in men’s doubles (alongside longtime friend Tommy Paul) and is currently ranked a career-high No. 4.
Now Fritz, 27, is back at the BNP Paribas Open propelled by momentum and ambition — and beginning with a title quest at the site of his breakthrough.
“Once I reach a new milestone, it becomes so much easier for me to start doing it again and again and again, and then it’s on to the next thing,” Fritz told ESPN recently. “That’s always been the case for me. … The year I had last year, especially at the end of the year, gives me a lot of confidence.
“Obviously the ultimate goal is to win a Grand Slam, but I’m also really focused on wanting to win some [other] big titles this year.”
While these goals might sound daunting, high expectations are nothing new for Fritz. He learned the game from his mom Kathy, a former top-10 player on the WTA Tour and three-time major quarterfinalist, and dad Gus, also a professional player and an accomplished coach. After winning the 2015 US Open boys title and reaching the top ranking among juniors, Fritz has long been considered one of the country’s best hopes to snap the now 21-year men’s major title drought. And his early results on tour only fueled such optimism.
Fritz reached the final in the third ATP tournament of his career, at Memphis in 2016, and became the youngest American man to reach a tour final since Michael Chang in 1988. He cracked the top 100 soon after. He won his first ATP title in 2019, on grass at Eastbourne, and made his top-25 debut the following month.
He notched his first Masters 1000-level semifinal appearance at Indian Wells in 2021, but it was his surprising triumph the following year that really changed everything. He had nearly withdrawn from the final with an ankle injury just hours before the match began, yet became a champion at the tournament he had grown up attending as a fan — and against one of the game’s greats.
He wanted more.
“I don’t want to get ahead of myself,” Fritz said at the time. “I want to take things one step at a time. My goal for the last couple months has been top 10. … Obviously I’d love to go way higher than that and achieve way more than that. Like I said, take it one step at a time, not get ahead of myself, it’s just one tournament. Go back to work, never be satisfied with the good results. Just keep wanting more.”
He reached his first Grand Slam quarterfinals less than four months later at Wimbledon.
Fritz won two titles in 2023 and made his US Open quarterfinal debut. Then everything truly came together last season. He won Olympic bronze in men’s doubles, and became the first American man to make the second week at every major since Andre Agassi in 2003, reaching the quarterfinals at both the Australian Open and Wimbledon, the fourth round at the French Open and, of course, the final at the US Open.
He followed it by finishing the year with another final appearance at the ATP Finals.
“Reaching both of those finals just gave me confidence and, I guess, the reassurance and belief that I belong there and deserve to be there,” Fritz said.
The entirety of his season, but particularly the end, firmly cemented Fritz’s status as the top American man. It also lit a fire for the rest of his compatriots, many of whom are close with one another.
“To see Fritz reach that [US Open] final was awesome,” Paul, who has been a friend since childhood and is ranked No. 11, told ESPN. “We support each other endlessly. We are so happy for each other. When one of us [top Americans] does well in a tournament, [or] one of us wins a tournament, we all then know in the back of our head that we can do it too.
“I feel like Fritz had been that guy for all American tennis over the past eight years or so. He has absolutely led the way. Every generation needs that guy, and I think it’s awesome it’s him.”
One thing that hasn’t changed for Fritz? His level of fame and his desire — or lack thereof — for the spotlight. Fritz, who spends much of his downtime playing video games, said he only gets recognized by “true” tennis fans, although, he added, “I don’t really leave my place too often.”
Fritz brought his momentum and confidence into the season and immediately found even more success. Teaming up alongside Coco Gauff, among others, the duo led the American team to the title at the United Cup. Fritz won four of his five singles matches, including in the final against Poland’s Hubert Hurkacz.
Though Fritz hoped he would be able to build off 2024 in Melbourne for the year’s first Slam, that didn’t exactly go to plan. He lost in the third round to Gael Monfils 3-6, 7-5, 7-6(1), 6-4 and was handed his earliest major exit since 2023. Since then, he won just two combined matches in Dallas and Delray Beach and had to withdraw ahead of Acapulco with an abdominal injury.
But Fritz said he was far from “panic mode,” and committed to staying the course.
“I felt really confident [entering the new season]. I felt like I was playing good tennis, and I still think that,” Fritz said. “The Australian Open loss doesn’t really hurt me as bad as I think some losses would because I still felt like I played pretty well in the match. I didn’t necessarily lose because I didn’t play well. I lost because my opponent played really well, and that happens sometimes.
“It’s easy for me to keep my confidence up and I know that the results and everything will come if I just keep playing.”
And Fritz hopes it all comes together — his high-level of play and the results — at Indian Wells once again.
