Taylor Fritz upset at 2026 French Open raises more doubts

Taylor Fritz. Geoff Burke-Imagn Images

Nishesh Basavareddy's upset of Taylor Fritz at 2026 French Open raises more doubts about American star

By Clark Dalton | Last updated May 24, 2026 6:04 PM ET

How is American tennis star Taylor Fritz supposed to beat a prime Jannik Sinner or Carlos Alcaraz when he can't beat unseeded players in the first round of Grand Slams?

No. 7-seeded Fritz lost to fellow American Nishesh Basavareddy, 6-7 (7) 6-7 (7), 7-6 (9) 1-6, in the first round of the French Open at Roland-Garros in Paris on Sunday. It marks the second consecutive year Fritz has failed to advance past the first round of the clay-court tournament. He lost to German Daniel Altmaier in 2025.

"What a match," Basavareddy said after the match (h/t Field Level Media). "Taylor's obviously a great player, so super happy to get through that, especially after losing the third set. First French Open main draw, and all the support, it's incredible."

Fritz, who has raked in $30,439,331 in prize money over his career, is a great player; he's just not the one who wins Grand Slams. And at this point, he may never do so.

USA's Nishesh Basavareddy UPSETS fellow American No. 7 Taylor Fritz

Fritz was the second highest ranked American coming into to Roland-Garros pic.twitter.com/IxRtJNmuFt
— Bleacher Report (@BleacherReport) May 24, 2026

Taylor Fritz's chances of winning his first Grand Slam are growing slimmer after French Open loss

World No. 9 Fritz — who entered the French Open as the second-highest-ranked American behind Ben Shelton (No. 5) — is one of many stars hoping to end the United States' drought in men's singles at Grand Slams.

No American man has won a Grand Slam since Andy Roddick at the 2003 U.S. Open. He was 22 when he hoisted that trophy. Fritz turns 29 on Oct. 28.

He has continued to struggle against his younger rivals. Fritz is 1-4 against world No. 1 Sinner (who turns 25 on Aug. 16) and 1-5 against world No. 2 Alcaraz (23).

Forget about Alcaraz and Sinner. If Fritz can't beat players like Basavareddy, he can kiss his chances of winning a Grand Slam goodbye.

Basavareddy, 21, is a former Stanford Cardinal standout who entered Sunday's match with a 12-20 record on the ATP Tour. He's playing in the main draw on a wild-card invitation. Sure, the upset is a cool moment for Basavareddy, but let's be real, he's not a regular Grand Slam contender.

To cut Fritz slack, he's been battling tendinitis in his right knee and an oblique injury. Those issues held him out for nearly two months before the Geneva Open, which ran from May 16-23.

The elite players, however, find a way to play through that pain. Fritz seems to lack the qualities that those competitors have. And that's why it's becoming more difficult to envision him winning a Grand Slam after another early French Open exit.

Clark Dalton

Clark Dalton is a 2022 journalism graduate of the University of Texas at Austin. He gained experience in sports media over the past seven years — from live broadcasting and creating short films to podcasting and producing. In college, he wrote for The Daily Texan. He loves sports and enjoys hiking, kayaking and camping.

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