Taylor Fritz has taken the tennis world by storm with his exceptional performance at the US Open. The American successfully made his way to a grand slam semi-final for the first time ever. With this achievement, he has etched a new record in his family full of tennis enthusiasts.
It is known that tennis runs deep in Fritz’s family, as both his parents have a close connection to the sport. Fritz’s mother, Kathy, and father, Guy, were both pro tennis players and greatly impacted what the American is today.
Kathy’s tennis career included 7 WTA singles titles with the highest ranking of world number 10. On the other hand, Guy switched to coaching after playing tennis for a brief period, and this teaching venture earned him more prominence and success. He was awarded US Olympic Development Coach of the Year in 2016.
However, before Fritz’s win over Zverev, Kathy reached the quarterfinal of a grand slam three times—twice at Roland Garros and once at the US Open. With his quarterfinal victory against the German, Fritz has broken the family’s grand slam semifinal duck.
Fritz’s journey to professional tennis
Apart from inheriting tennis genes from his parents, Fritz‘s participation in other sports during his schooling years in San Diego made him aim to become a professional athlete. However, after observing that tennis was the sport he was the best at, the 2024 US Open semifinalist decided to become a pro tennis player, just like his parents.
Having parents with a background in the sport that he wished to pursue was a huge advantage for Taylor. His father explained how having a tennis court in the backyard of their house helped the world number 12 in his formative years.
“We were very lucky. We were living in southern California. We had a [tennis] court in our backyard, so Taylor had all the advantages. He really did,” said Guy in the Parenting Aces podcast.
Both his parents had different roles in making him a tennis player. While his father played a major coaching role, his mother took a step back but helped him make decisions and often went on tournaments with him.
“She’s there for the practices, she’s there for the matches — otherwise she kind of leaves me to do my own thing,” Taylor had told Tennis.com while speaking about his mother’s contribution to his career.
However, speaking about his father, Fritz explained how he often has a tough time with him. Being one of his major critics, his father often explains all the ‘wrong’ things he does, sometimes hurting his confidence.
However, Fritz credits Guy with helping him develop his formative years as a tennis player. One major reason Fritz got intensive training from his father was the latter’s wish to make his son a ‘champion from the time he was born.‘
With his Round of 16 victory against Casper Ruud, he became only the second American to reach a grand slam quarterfinal thrice in the same year.
Earlier this year, he reached the quarters of the Australian Open and Wimbledon. Taylor’s performance this year suggests that he is definitely going to become one of the sport’s champion players.
