Can Sinner crush buoyant Fritz’s American dream in US Open final?

Who: Jannik Sinner vs Taylor Fritz
What: US Open 2024 men’s singles final
When: Sunday, September 8 at 2pm local time (18:00 GMT)
Where: Arthur Ashe Stadium, USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center, New York, United States
How: Al Jazeera’s live coverage begins at 15:00 GMT
Jannik Sinner will hope to block out a rocking home crowd when he faces Taylor Fritz in the US Open final at the Arthur Ashe Stadium in New York, where the 12th seed will be bidding to become the first American man in 21 years to win a Grand Slam singles title.
US fans had become accustomed to celebrating the triumphs of American men for decades, with the likes of Jimmy Connors, John McEnroe, Jim Courier, Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi collecting 41 slams between them from the 1970s to the early 2000s.
But since Andy Roddick won his sole major at Arthur Ashe Stadium in 2003, American men have failed to win any of the four majors. With the barren run lasting for 82 consecutive slams, New York fans will be turning up the volume to deafening levels on Sunday as they get behind Fritz and hope he can finally snap that losing streak.

“I’m gonna accept that. I have my team and my people who are close to me,” said Italian top-seed Sinner. “In my mind, I know that there are many people watching from home from Italy, and it’s just take some support from them.”
Sinner has enjoyed an extraordinary year with a major breakthrough at the Australian Open and was in top form as he won the Cincinnati tune-up tournament last month.
The biggest question mark over his chances now is whether he damaged his wrist following a fall during the semifinal, as he braced himself with his left hand when he fell to the court.
“The physio loosened it up very fast on court, so after I felt OK in the beginning. Then, after, it went away by playing, which is good,” Sinner told reporters.
He will be ready to deploy all the weapons in his arsenal against Fritz, who wants to defy the odds again after a convincing run through Flushing Meadows.
Fritz beat former finalists Casper Ruud and Alexander Zverev en route to the all-American semifinal, where he outlasted Frances Tiafoe.
Home favourite Fritz believes his clash against Sinner will be less stressful than his encounter with fellow American Frances Tiafoe as he will be the underdog when he meets the world number one.
“I’ve always enjoyed playing him [Sinner],” Fritz said.
The American possesses one of the most lethal serves in the sport and sent over 75 aces across the tournament.
He is also brimming with confidence that he can end the US men’s major drought.
“I have a feeling I’m going to come out and play really well and win. When I play good tennis, I think that level is good enough to win.”

Age: 23
Current ATP ranking: 1
US Open seeding: 1
2024 majors titles: Four
Hard court win-loss ratio in 2024: 34-2
Previous best result at US Open: Quarterfinals (2022)
Age: 26
ATP ranking: 12
US Open seeding: 12
2024 major titles: None
Hard court win-loss ratio in 2024: 18-7
Previous best result at US Open: Quarterfinals (2023)