“It was crazy,” Fritz said. “I definitely cried a lot more than I thought I was going to. I was pretty upset, honestly to see how much hate Frances and Jack got for, like, winning the match. It upset me a lot actually to see people getting mad at Frances for hitting Roger or hitting the ball at Rafa at net. This is not an exhibition. We are playing for a lot, and we’re playing for a lot of money. I know Roger would have absolutely hated it if they just gave it to him.”

The Laver Cup is an official ATP Tour event, but, like the Olympics and the Davis Cup, does not award ranking points. It pays participation fees to the players based on rankings, but Federer made it clear when he cocreated the event that he wanted players to take the event seriously. Members of the winning team receive $250,000 each while the losers get no prize money.

Fritz has made it a priority and, like his American Laver Cup teammates, he passed on representing the United States in the Davis Cup last week, in part because the group stage was in China immediately after the U.S. Open.

Fritz is 3-1 in Laver Cup singles matches and, ranked No. 7, will be the leader of Team World. He is also on a roll after becoming the first American man in 15 years to reach a major singles final, losing to No. 1 Jannik Sinner in New York.

At age 26, Fritz continues to progress. He has long had a big forehand and first serve and a solid two-handed backhand. But he has improved his second serve and mobility. His transition game and net play need work, as the loss to Sinner made clear, but what impresses Fritz’s coaches most is his grit.

“Taylor’s an unconditional competitor,” said Paul Annacone, one of his longtime coaches, who worked with Federer. “It’s the first and last thing I look for. I just know that no matter what is going on in his life, on the court, off the court, with his body, between his ears, he’s not going to not give everything to the next point. It’s not in his DNA. When you have that, and you have the weapons and skill-set he has, that’s going to create opportunities at the highest level. I think that’s why his evolution has gotten him there.”