Heading into hard-court season with the last Grand Slam on the horizon, American tennis is on the rise! At the National Bank Open in Montreal, Taylor Fritz is grabbing all the attention, powering into the quarterfinals while fellow Americans Coco Gauff and Frances Tiafoe exited early. The World No.4 is showing his full range, and the results speak for themselves.

On Sunday, Fritz edged past Jiri Lehecka 7-6 (4), 6-7 (5), and 7-6 (5) to reach the Montreal quarterfinals for the very first time. This run is more than just another achievement—it means Fritz has now reached the quarterfinals or better at all nine Masters 1000 events in his career. Canada was his last missing piece, after round of 16 losses in 2022 and 2023.

Fritz’s best Masters 1000 finishes include winning Indian Wells in 2022; semifinal runs in Miami (2025), Monte Carlo (2023), Madrid (2024), and Shanghai (2024); and quarterfinal runs in Rome (2024), Canada (2025), Cincinnati (2022 and 2023), and Paris (2021). He’s put together a record of consistency across the board.

What’s even more impressive? Taylor Fritz is the first American ever to reach the quarterfinals or better at all nine Masters 1000 venues. Pete Sampras, Andre Agassi, and Andy Roddick each fell short at Monte Carlo, while Jim Courier missed Hamburg (now Madrid). Fritz has completed the quarterfinal sweep, joining an elite club with over 50 career Masters 1000 match wins.

He’s not flying solo though! Alongside Taylor in Montreal, compatriots Ben Shelton and Alex Michelsen are hitting big milestones too. After the round of 16, OptaAce dropped this on X: “Three Americans (Taylor Fritz, Ben Shelton, Alex Michelsen) have reached the quarter-final at an ATP Masters 1000 event for the first time since Indian Wells in 2004 (Andre Agassi, Andy Roddick, James Blake). Big.” Just like that, echoes of American tennis greatness rang out louder than ever.

Now Fritz’s feat shines bright in tennis history, and he’s piling up wins like aces in a serve fest. With a 35-13 record this season, he’s only the fourth player to crack 35 wins this year.

Since June, he’s been blazing hot at 18-3, snagging titles in Stuttgart and Eastbourne and making a deep run to the Wimbledon semis. Clocking 319 tour-level wins, Fritz stands tall as the most successful active American male player right now. He’s even hailed as the one to watch during the US Open!

Taylor Fritz earns a bold prediction for his home slam!

As the National Bank Open charges full throttle, the Tennis Channel Live Podcast on August 3 amped up the buzz from Montreal. Former pro Nicolas Pereira joined Steve Weissman and Jon Wertheim, tossing out hot takes for the round of 16. Pereira spotlighted Fritz, reminding everyone he pegged the American as his Wimbledon dark horse. After Fritz’s career-best semifinal run, Pereira’s praise was crystal clear.

On the other hand, Jon Wertheim added some perspective: “There’s a defending champion who just won Wimbledon, who might have a thing or two to say about that. There’s another kid from Spain, but no, I think Taylor Fritz, he’s put himself in the conversation and that’s half the battle. He knows this and Steve, he told us flatly. He knows he still needs to figure out that Sinner-Alcaraz rhythm but I think he’s up to it. I don’t think that’s a crazy call at all.” That’s a bold call!

This year’s headliners have been nothing short of electric with these top stars. Jannik Sinner snagged Wimbledon, snapping Carlos Alcaraz’s 24-match grass streak. Alcaraz previously took him down in an epic five-and-a-half-hour French Open win—the longest in the tournament’s history. But with Fritz blazing through in Canada, maybe he’s ready to shuffle the deck?

Next up for Taylor Fritz is a showdown with Andrey Rublev in the Canadian Open quarters. Their head-to-head stands at 5-4 for Fritz after nine matchups. Will he topple Rublev again and make a semis push? We’re all ears for your takes!