"Taylor Fritz is overrated"; "He needs a break" - Fans frustrated as 'worst' World No. 4 suffers back-to-back setbacks with Basel loss

Taylor Fritz hasn't been having a great time lately. His recent early exit at the 2025 Swiss Indoors Basel drew a lot of attention, with tennis fans expressing their frustrations over his loss.

Fritz started the Asian swing on a high note at the Japan Open, reaching the final with impressive wins over players like Sebastian Korda and Jenson Brooksby. In the summit clash, he faced Carlos Alcaraz and put up a strong fight but ultimately lost to the Spaniard in straight sets.

The American then looked to bounce back at the Shanghai Masters, but Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard stood in his way, defeating him in the Round of 32. The same story repeated in Basel, where Fritz, the top seed, fell 3-6, 4-6 to unseeded Ugo Humbert in the Round of 16, despite having beaten Shanghai champion Valentin Vacherot earlier.

Fans were far from pleased with Taylor Fritz's performance and took to X (formerly Twitter) to voice their frustration. Many even labeled him the 'worst' World No. 4, with one user writing:

"Fritz is overrated. He should rest man." "Taylor Fritz needs a break. He looks spent after a long season. Past few results are indicative of it," another wrote.

One account posted:

"The worst number 4 of all time Taylor Frauditz is back to his usual form. Cant say it’s really a surprise Ugo Humbert just destroyed him probably the best indoor player not called Sinner, Djokovic or FAA." "Apart from Sinner and Alcaraz all the others are just amateurs. No.4 in the world?" one user commented. "Just when I started appreciating & comparing Fritz to Sinner & Alcaraz he comes back swinging to proof everything wrong," another joined in.

One account tweeted:

"It is a joke to have this clown as the world number 4. There isn't much tennis besides Alcaraz and Sinner."

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Taylor Fritz blames hectic ATP schedule for players' injuries

Taylor Fritz pictured at the 2025 Six Kings Slam | Image Source: Getty

Recently, Jack Draper spoke out about the demanding ATP Tour schedule and its negative impact on players' bodies, and Taylor Fritz echoed those concerns. This comes after Holger Rune suffered a season-ending Achilles tendon injury at the Stockholm Open semifinals just a few days ago.

Draper wrote on X:

"Injuries are going to happen… we are pushing our bodies to do things they aren’t supposed to in elite sport. We have so many incredible younger guys on the tour right now and I’m proud to be apart of that, however, the tour and the calendar have to adapt if any of us are gonna achieve some sort of longevity…."

Fritz replied to Draper's tweet in agreement, adding that not only the schedule but also court conditions and the balls are having a significantly negative impact nowadays compared to before. He wrote:

"Facts, also seeing more injuries and burnout now than ever before because balls, courts, conditions have slowed down a lot making the weekly grind even more physically demanding and tough on the body."

Fritz is next set to play at the Paris Masters, starting on October 27, while Draper ended his season in September due to an arm injury. Meanwhile, Rune has successfully undergone surgery and is recovering well, though no return date has been confirmed.

Edited by Pritha Ghosh