Taylor Fritz has reached the Wimbledon quarterfinals for the fourth time in his career after defeating Alexander Bublik in the Round of 16 on Monday.
Fritz, the No. 2 ranked American and current No. 8 in the world, is 1-2 in his previous quarterfinal matches at the All-England Lawn - he beat Karen Khachanov in 2025 to advance to his second-ever Grand Slam final before falling to Carlos Alcaraz in the semis.
The American has enjoyed a dominant run at this year's Wimbledon, winning 12 of 13 sets including a straight-set victory against Bublik - the No. 11 ranked player in the world. His form has been exceptional, consistently hitting aces and rarely making mistakes. In his recent statement performance, Fritz hit 47 winners compared to just eight unforced errors and drilled 23 aces, winning 89% of his first-serve points.
While World No. 1 Jannik Sinner, No. 8 Novak Djokovic, and No. 4 Felix Auger-Aliassime are still in it (though one of Djokovic or FAA will lose to one another), No. 2 Alcaraz is out of the tournament with an injured wrist.
Alcaraz's absence opens a slight door for Fritz who still has to get through World No. 3 Alexander Zverev in the quarterfinal - the winner of this year's French Open. If Fritz does end up winning, he'll get a matchup against the winner of No. 10 Flavio Cobolli and the un-seeded Arthur Frey. Most likely, the American will be favored in a hypothetical match against either of those opponents, clearing the way for an appearance in the final.
Zverev vs. Fritz is a coin-flip match according to oddsmakers, with both priced in at -110. This is the best chance for Fritz to finally claim a Grand Slam win and begs the question: when was the last time an American man won Wimbledon?
When was the last time an American won Wimbledon?
The last American man to win Wimbledon was the legendary Pete Sampras back in 2000. It was his seventh Wimbledon crown and his 13th career Grand Slam title altogether.
Sampras' 2000 victory marked the end of one of the most impressive runs at a single tournament in history. He won Wimbledon in seven of eight years (1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000), only missing out on the 1996 title after falling to eventual-champion Richard Krajicek in the quarterfinal.
Back in the 90s and 2000s, the Americans were getting their hands on several Grand Slam titles. Sampras, Andre Agassi, Jim Courier, and Andy Roddick all won majors in those two decades and were always a threat to at least get to the final at every major.
Since those four have retired, U.S. players have been itching to get back to the biggest stage. The last American to win a major, not just Wimbledon, was Roddick at the 2004 U.S. Open. He was also the last one to even make a final (2009 Wimbledon) until Fritz made the championship round at the 2024 U.S. Open. Still, no American has made the Wimbledon final since Roddick.
Fritz has a serious chance to breakthrough here in 2026. If he does reach the final, it will most likely come against Sinner where Fritz will need to have the match of his life to win it.
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