NEW YORK — In the build-up to Wimbledon, Taylor Fritz said men’s tennis feels more open now, compared with the Big Three era.

“It took just one of them to be playing incredibly well,” he said of Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer.

“We were younger and not as good as we are now. You were hoping that they’d have an off day and you’d have an on day,” Fritz said. “Nowadays, anyone in the top 15, it’s kind of whoever plays better.

“It’s exciting for all of us because we know that all it takes is two weeks or 10 days of playing really high-level tennis, and taking the opportunity as best as possible.”

This U.S. Open has proved Fritz right and wrong. Early exits for Djokovic and Carlos Alcaraz offered hope to the chasing pack, but the tournament ended upholding the status quo, as world No. 1 Jannik Sinner won his second Grand Slam of the year by beating Fritz 6-3, 6-4, 7-5.

With the other two majors of 2024 going to Alcaraz, 21, he and Sinner, 23, have won five of the last six Slams. They are delivering at the sharp end of majors with Big Three-like efficiency, and they’re still quite young.

Their domination feels different to the rest of the locker room, though. After Frances Tiafoe was defeated by Fritz in Friday’s semifinal, he said this tournament had been “big” in showing the best of the rest that a Grand Slam win is within reach. “It shows that it’s definitely possible,” he said. “The game’s open. Even with Alcaraz and Sinner and these other guys, it’s not what it used to be.”

Alexander Zverev, ranked just ahead of Alcaraz at No. 2 but without the same major success, expressed similar sentiments ahead of Wimbledon.

Part of the sentiment comes from the fact that even if they’re winning the bulk of the slams, Sinner and Alcaraz are not yet at the point of being a shoo-in for the semis or finals of every big tournament. Alcaraz showed that with his second-round exit here. Djokovic is still wildly talented but has been more uneven, offering the field a glimmer of hope after his worst Grand Slam year since 2017 (and second worst since 2009).

Fritz said Sunday that what encourages him is that he reached the final without playing that well.

“I think it’s really positive for me because I don’t feel like at any specific point in these two weeks … I was playing, like, amazing tennis,” he said. “Maybe it is a bit more open. I don’t think you have to, I don’t know, play unbelievable to go deep in tournaments and contend.”

Players such as Fritz also haven’t built up the kind of scar tissue with Alcaraz and Sinner that they had with the Big Three. Even if they find themselves losing to them, at least they feel like they have a chance of winning.

With the Big Three, players such as Fritz largely went in with hope rather than expectations. By contrast, before facing Sinner, Fritz said: “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.”

In the end, Sinner proved too strong. Fritz acknowledged afterward that: “I think that (now) you can find yourself a little deeper in the draws — quarterfinals and stuff — if you just play solid tennis. I still think to beat the top guys, you need to bring your best game.”

And that is the rub. For a player like Fritz to break through and win a slam, he more than likely still has to face Sinner, Alcaraz or Djokovic. And as much as this tournament showed there might be more chances for players outside the elite to reach the quarters, semis and finals, none of those players recorded a landmark win against one of the top three.

Djokovic’s conqueror, Alexei Popyrin, is a rung or two below the group of main challengers, and Botic van de Zandschulp, who defeated Alcaraz, isn’t likely to be at the sharp end of slams anytime soon.

Fritz, though, will come out of this tournament with his standing in the game slightly altered. He spoke after losing to Sinner about how you can only beat what’s in front of you, and the way he navigated the highly stressful and slightly strange semifinal against his good friend and compatriot Tiafoe on Friday seems to have boosted his confidence.

There had always been a competition between those two and the rest of the close group of American players about who would get to a Grand Slam final first. Fritz has done it and, in his mind, while not playing his best. That bodes well for him heading into the Australian Open in January.

But Sunday, Fritz was reminded he’s still a way off from taking that final step. He spoke about how his Plan B of grinding it out works against most players but not those at the very top. He knows he’ll need to add more to his game to take that next step.

Because while the paths to the semis and finals might be getting easier, as long as Alcaraz and Sinner are delivering, the chasing pack still has a way to go.

(Top photo: Kena Betancur / AFP)

Welcome to Great Adaptations, the Book Review’s regular multiple-choice quiz about books that have gone on to find new life as movies, television shows, theatrical productions, video games and more. This week’s challenge is focused on sports books that have been adapted into films within the past 25 years.

Just tap or click your answers to the five questions below. And scroll down after you finish the last question for links to the books and their movie adaptations.

The NFL saw a record-low 22 percent of kickoffs returned last season, and only four of those were returned for scores. The NFL introduced significant changes to its kickoff rules for the 2024 season to boost the incentive for more players to return kickoffs — while limiting touchbacks and injuries.

In Week 1 of the new kickoff format, Cardinals returner DeeJay Dallas ignited the comeback with a thrilling 96-yard kickoff return for a touchdown.

THE FIRST DYNAMIC KICKOFF RETURN TOUCHDOWN.

DEEJAY DALLAS. 96 YARDS.

📺: #AZvsBUF on CBS/Paramount+
📱: https://t.co/waVpO909ge pic.twitter.com/COYfonnYxR

— NFL (@NFL) September 8, 2024

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Slicing through three tackles at the 40-yard line, he dashed toward the end zone, diving past kicker Tyler Bass to score. The Bills, leading 31-20 with 8:44 left, regretted kicking deep. The Cardinals then capitalized with a successful two-point conversion by James Conner, narrowing the gap to 31-28.

The touchdown marked Dallas’ first career kickoff return in his NFL  and collegiate careers, although he has return experience, having returned kicks in all three of his seasons in the league.

Although the new rule had a slow start, the first Sunday of the NFL season still delivered excitement with three kickoff returns exceeding 50 yards. In 2023, there were only 10 returns of 50 yards or more.

The Bills held on to their lead to start the season 1-0 as they beat the Cardinals 34-28. Buffalo will face AFC East rival Miami on the road during Week 2 of “Thursday Night Football.”

Required reading

(Photo: Brooke Sutton / Getty Images)