Taylor Fritz crashed out in the first round of the French Open on Sunday.
The American fell to compatriot Nishesh Basavareddy in four sets, 7-6, 7-6, 6-7, 6-1, suffering an opening-round defeat in Paris for the second year in a row.
Fritz did not have much clay-court preparation heading into Roland Garros, having featured at just one tune-up tournament on the surface in Geneva.
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He had been sidelined for two months since the Miami Open due to a knee injury.
Following his loss to world number 148 Basavareddy, Fritz suggested the loss was less to do with his performance, and more to do with his opponent’s high level.
Taylor Fritz reacts after first-round defeat at Roland Garros
Speaking in his post-match press conference, Fritz said: “I really don’t think my level was that bad, to be honest.
“I mean, all things considered, I thought actually I played all right. He just played incredibly well.
“I mean, the biggest thing was just the dropshots were crazy. He was hitting dropshots. Typically when someone is dropshotting me too much, I kind of just tell myself, okay, I need to hit the ball deeper.
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“He was hitting insane dropshots, like, off balls that were landing on the baseline. He killed me with that, and there’s not really much I can do about it, like I said.
“I feel like he’s just hitting insane dropshots off of crazy shots to hit dropshots off of.”
Taylor Fritz’s points to defend during the upcoming grass season
Fritz, currently ninth in the rankings, didn’t lose any ATP points with his first-round loss, having matched last year’s finish.
But he’ll need to find form quickly ahead of the grass season, during which he clinched two titles last year.
In 2025, Fritz won both the Stuttgart Open and the Eastbourne Open before going on to reach the semifinals at Wimbledon.
Fritz will be defending a total of 1300 ATP points on the grass swing, with 800 of that tally being protected at the All England Club.
Should he continue his poor run of form, Fritz could drop out of the top 10 for the first time since 2024.
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