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Taylor Fritz created a unique American record at the ongoing Italian Open in Rome. Fritz earned the distinction of being the first American to reach the quarter-finals of three different Masters 1000 tournaments on clay after defeating Grigor Dimitrov in the fourth round of the tournament.
Historically, American tennis players have struggled to adapt their game to the clay surface. Due to over-exposure to hard courts, and a lack of versatility in their arsenal, American players have struggled on the red dirt. A legend like Pete Sampras could never reach the final of the French Open as he struggled on the clay surface.
However, Taylor Fritz who is one of the leaders of US men's tennis on the ATP tour, has managed to become the first American player to reach the quarter-finals of three Masters events played on clay. Fritz defeated Dimitrov in the round of 16 to reach the quarterfinals of the ongoing Italian Open.
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This result came on the back of a semi-final finish at the Madrid Open where he defeated Francisco Cerundolo in the last eight. However, the American lost his semi-final to eventual champion Andrey Rublev. Fritz also made it to the quarters or more of the Monte-Carlo Masters in the previous two seasons.
Tennis journalists pointed out that these results have justified the new nickname attributed to Fritz - Claylor.
Fritz might face third seed Alexander Zverev in the Italian Open quarter-finals
Taylor Fritz is slated to face either Alexander Zverev or Nuno Borges in the quarter-finals of the Italian Open. If the results are according to the seedings of the tournament, Fritz should face third seed Zverev.
The head-to-head between the duo is 4-3 in favor of the German. However, this will be the first time the duo will be contesting on clay.
Zverev already has impressive credentials as far as playing on the red dirt is concerned. The German has made it to the semi-finals of Roland Garros for the last three years. The German already has multiple Masters titles on the surface with trophies in Madrid and Rome.
On the other hand, Fritz has never progressed beyond the third round of Roland Garros and has no career titles on the clay surface so far. He made it to one clay-court final at the Munich Open this year, where he lost to Jan-Lennard Struff.
