Taylor Fritz’s coach points out exactly where he has improved as a tennis player recently

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Taylor Fritz has been in fine form recently, as he finishes up his preparations for the US Open.

The American star began the US Open swing in Washington, where he reached the quarterfinals, losing out to Alejandro Davidovich Fokina in three sets.

Travelling north for the Canadian Open in Toronto, Fritz advanced to the semifinals, where he met his countryman, Ben Shelton.

Failing in his bid to reach a second Masters 1000 final, Fritz lost to Shelton, 4-6, 3-6.

Playing his final tournament before the US Open, Fritz was stunned by qualifier Terence Atmane in the fourth round of the Cincinnati Open, having beaten Emilio Nava and Lorenzo Sonego in his first two matches.

Despite losing early in Cincinnati, Fritz will still head to New York as one of the pre-tournament favorites, as his coach now highlights the biggest improvements he’s made to his game recently.

Michael Russell says Taylor Fritz’s movement has improved but admits it’s still a ‘work in progress’

During a recent interview, Fritz’s coach, Michael Russell, shared what he noticed about the American’s game when they first started working together.

“Taylor [Fritz] has a great serve, really nice serving motion, so we don’t really touch that too much,” he said.

“One of the main components of his game I saw when I came in was his movement, his reaction time, his fitness, explosiveness, and endurance; it all encompasses a lot of factors in tennis.

“With tennis, as you see the modern game, it doesn’t matter if you’re 6ft 10, you still have to move well.”

Russell has worked hard with Fritz to improve his movement recently, but admits it’s still a ‘work in progress’.

“We broke down a lot of the movement parts of his game to make sure he’s transitioning more effectively. That’s obviously still a work in progress,” he said.

“The endurance, the strength, we try to microdose as much as possible at tournaments with the long schedule.

“But he’s gotten fitter, faster, his defense, being able to go from neutral to offense has gotten better, and that’s bred more confidence in his game.”

Standing at 6ft 5 inches tall, Fritz is one of the tallest players in the world’s top ten, but is still a solid mover.

Only time will tell if Fritz can make another step forward with his movement and break into the top three in the future.

Michael Russell claims tennis has changed, ‘it’s a business’

Formerly a top 100 player in his own right, Russell has been around the game for quite some time and has witnessed a lot change over the years.

Commenting on the changes in the sizes of players’ teams, Russell claimed tennis is now more of a ‘business’ than ever before.

“There are full-on teams these days,” he said.

“All the entourages are four to six people deep between coaches, trainers, physios, analysts, you have some doctors, hitting partners.

“So it’s a business, full-on teams. There’s not much social interaction, you know, between players, and it’s become a whole business.

“It’s very professional, there’s a lot of money to be made.”

Russell was right to say that there is money to be made, as the prize money has gone up drastically in 2025.

The prize money available at the four Grand Slams this year has broken records, as the US Open champion is set to take home $5,000,000 next month.

Fritz, one of the pre-tournament favorites, will certainly be hoping it’s him that takes home the title and the cheque that comes with it.

The 2025 US Open is scheduled to begin on Sunday, August 24.