Fritz: "I know that moving up to the net more will help me, but then on the court, it's not so easy"

Taylor Fritz is seeking to make an impact in this Miami Open 2026, a tournament that could be the last before a prolonged break. So far, the American has already notched two victories and will now face Lehecka in the round of 16.

But before facing that next challenge scheduled for Wednesday, Taylor Fritz shared in a press conference how difficult it is to compete against his friends within the locker room, like in his last match against Reilly Opelka. Interestingly, he punishes himself by thinking he was the worst of his generation, even though he has been the absolute leader of men's tennis in his country for a while now. A player who has beaten the best, but is aware of how much he needs to improve to reach the next level. It's easy to say but not so easy to execute, as the current world No. 7 reveals.

Playing against a friend like Reilly

"It's not necessarily fun when you have to face a friend, although I've been doing it for a long time. After playing against Reilly, Tommy, or Frances so many times, you get used to it. It is what it is, you have to go out and play. When I met them, we were like 14 or 15 years old, at that time I was the worst, I can assure you and everyone will confirm it, but that's not the point. I would say Frances was the most advanced, but with Tommy and Reilly very close. I feel I was far behind them."

Feeling comfortable in tiebreaks

"You have to be in tune with the court and the balls, feel comfortable with them. Sometimes it helps to move forward and sometimes to stay back, it changes depending on the conditions. Today, for example, I saw that I would have more success if I moved back, so I stuck with that. He also made some mistakes in the first set, so then in the second, I could steal some points from him, and it made me very happy. It's funny because the way I broke him in the second set is the way he usually breaks me, which is quite annoying (laughs)."

Taylor Fritz has a plan: to come in more to the net

"I agree with the idea that ending more points at the net will help me, but it's also about creating more rhythm in those plays, like hitting a dead ball that allows me to come in. Sometimes, when I don't have that work rhythm enough, I see I'm not good enough against some guys who are faster. I don't manage to put them in a difficult enough position so they don't pass me or so their shot isn't very good, because otherwise they force me to make the perfect volley. The intention is clear, but it's easy to say from the commentator's booth, down there it's more complex. I need to come in more to the net, yes, but first, I must improve in the shots before the volley."

The moment of Sebastian Korda

"I saw him play a lot in Dallas, we had a very tight match between us. I think I played really well in that match, I was just two points away from losing, so imagine. I know he's been playing well in recent weeks, that he's really improved his serving, being very aggressive and hitting hard from the baseline. He's serving even better than usual, you can tell he's confident."

Image

What does it feel like to play against the No. 1?

"I don't usually think that I'm playing against the world No. 1, my mind just sees the player as one of the best guys and nothing more, I don't think about the ranking. When I played against Nadal and beat him, maybe I thought I could also be world No. 1 at some point, although I guess it's not that easy. Those matches are always exciting, the same when I've had to play against Djokovic, I wasn't thinking then that he was the number one. In the Laver Cup, I defeated Carlos and for me, it meant securing a great point for the team, but I didn't even realize he was number one at that time. It's great to go out and play, especially when you're young, without pressure, you just go out to have fun."

This is an automatic translation. You can read the original news, Fritz: “Sé que subir más a la red me ayudará, pero luego en pista no es tan fácil”