Taylor Fritz has been dealing with an abdominal injury this season and recently suffered a rolled ankle in Geneva. Despite these setbacks, the American tennis player remains generally satisfied with his performance. However, he acknowledges a recurring issue: struggling to perform well during crucial points in matches.
Fritz’s difficulties were evident in his recent match against Daniel Altmaier at Roland Garros, where he was defeated 7-5, 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 in the first round. Reflecting on the loss, Fritz stated, “It’s kind of what’s been going on a bit lately. I think I’m playing generally fine. It’s just a lot of important points, I just am playing horrendous tennis on a lot of the important points.”
He further elaborated on his struggles during key moments: “When I’m break point down, or I’ve got looks on his serve… all the pressure, important points… I don’t know what’s going on. I’m finding ways to just play the worst point possible.”
In this opening round match, Fritz converted only one out of five break points and saved three out of eight according to Infosys ATP Stats. Despite feeling uncomfortable on clay recently—with Madrid being an exception—Fritz believes that his overall game is holding up.
As he looks forward to the grass-court season, Fritz is determined to improve his performance during critical points. He expressed optimism about overcoming this challenge: “The fact that I’m not just converting big points, not playing big points well… Once it’s gone, it’s gone. I’ll never think about it again.”
Fritz emphasized that this issue cannot be resolved through practice alone: “I felt great about my game in practice. Overall I don’t think I’m playing bad 90 percent of the match… It’s the 10 percent which ultimately decides the tennis match.”