Taylor Fritz has been playing through physical struggles throughout the start of the 2026 season.
Fritz has been struggling with tendonitis in his knee this year, which he admitted could force him to take a break at some point this year.
Despite this, the American decided to compete at the ATP 500 tournament in Dallas, where Fritz has taken medical timeouts during his matches.
Fritz has still been able to reach the final in Dallas, and he has now responded to those who have called for him to stop competing.
Taylor Fritz admits he has made mistakes with his injuries
Fritz beat Marin Cilic, 7-6(5) 7-6(3), to reach the final of the Dallas Open for the first time in his career.
Following his semifinal victory over the former US Open champion, Fritz was asked about criticism he had received for continuing to play given his recent injury concerns in his post-match press conference.
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While Fritz admitted he had made mistakes with playing through injury last year, he claimed that playing through tournaments was the right thing to do for his knee right now.
“There’s times when it has been completely valid, like you know if I look back at last year I had an oblique injury right around this time,” said Fritz. “It happened around Australian Open and I should not have played maybe here, but I should not have played Delray [Beach] the next week.
“I went to Acapulco and then pulled out there, I shouldn’t have gone there. There’s certain times for sure where I’ve made the wrong call with it.
“I think the main concern for a long time has been my knee. It’s not something that gets better with rest, you just need to work through it. I mean not necessarily play through it, but if I weren’t playing I’d be doing all the same rehab and strength stuff that I am doing here before all my practices and everything.
“So, you know I trust my physio and we think the knee can get better while I’m still playing tournaments, if it’s something I can play through and I think I’ve been moving really well on the court, I don’t think it’s something that has been hindering me.
“You know, I feel good about that decision and the other stuff I feel like I can play through and it’s noted, I think I’d be annoyed too as a fan just probably seeing someone that should pull out, seeming like they’re always injured.”
Fritz is scheduled to continue competing after the Dallas Open final, as he is entered into the ATP 250 tournament in Delray Beach.
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Taylor Fritz vs Ben Shelton Head-to-Head
Fritz’s physical issues have not held him back too much, as he has now reached his first final of the year in Dallas.
This is where he will play another American in Ben Shelton, who came through another close-fought three set match to beat defending champion Denis Shapovalov.
Despite being the top two American players on the ATP Tour right now, this will be just the third time that Fritz and Shelton have gone head-to-head.
| Year | Tournament | Result |
| 2023 | Indian Wells (R64) | Fritz beat Shelton, 6-4 6-3 |
| 2025 | Canadian Open (SF) | Shelton beat Fritz, 4-6 6-4 6-3 |
They have split their two previous meetings, with Shelton beating Fritz in their most recent encounter at the Canadian Open last year.
One of Fritz or Shelton will take a lead in the head-to-head when the Dallas Open final takes place at 1pm local time on Sunday, February 15.
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