Fritz: 'Nadal, Djokovic and Federer were already at the top at my age'
A year ago, Taylor Fritz was the semi-finalist at home ATP 250 event in Houston, beating Tim Smyczek, Ryan Harrison and Jack Sock before a tight loss to the eventual champion Steve Johnson, staying neck and neck in the opening two sets. Starting the previous season from outside the top-100, Taylor was able to secure the year-end top-50 spot thanks to 23 ATP wins, setting higher goals in 2019 that he has not been able to fulfil so far after just four wins on the Tour. After the first round exit in Brisbane, Taylor ousted the top-10 star John Isner en route to the quarter-final in Auckland, also reaching the third round at the Australian Open where Roger Federer beat him in straight sets.
In the following week, Fritz claimed Newport Beach Challenger crown before losing the next three matches in Delray Beach, Indian Wells and Miami, starting to feel left ankle pain against McDonald in Delray Beach skipping Acapulco, not being able to play at his 100% in March as well. After a suitable rest, Taylor is ready for another good Houston run, opening the campaign against Marcel Granollers and looking to find the form again and improve the season tally. The young American thinks he is capable of winning a Grand Slam title in the future and of chasing the place in the top-10 where the players like Djokovic, Nadal and Federer were already ranked at his current age.
“It’s getting a lot better,” Fritz said. “I feel like I’m hitting the ball well and I just need to be 100 per cent healthy. It’s not the kind of thing that’s going to heal if I stop playing but it does make a difference when you’re competing against the top guys, so I need to stay active. I’m rehabbing, doing everything I can to get back to where I was because when I take more than a couple of weeks off, I get rusty. I’m excited to be back in Houston, doing well here last year and hoping for an even better run in 2109. People are playing well longer but I still feel like they break through at similar times.
All those guys — Nadal, Federer, Djokovic — they were already top-10 and among the best players in the world when they were my age. The window still closes at 24 or 25 to be a top-10 player. I think I will be in contention for Grand Slam crown in the future if I stay healthy, it is very doable.”
from Tennis World USA http://bit.ly/2G21Uv1
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