In a candid moment of self-reflection, Taylor Fritz, the world No. 4 and America’s top-ranked men’s tennis player, opened up about a critical misstep early in the 2025 season that sent ripples through his campaign. Speaking at a press conference during the Mutua Madrid Open on April 24, 2025, the 27-year-old admitted that his decision to play through an oblique injury in February was a “bad decision” that prolonged his recovery and cost him valuable momentum. The revelation, laced with regret but tempered by resolve, sheds light on Fritz’s challenging year, one marked by a blazing start, unexpected setbacks, and a determined push to reclaim his form on the clay courts of Madrid.
Fritz’s 2025 began with a flourish. As the No. 4 seed at the United Cup, he powered the United States to their second title in three years, winning four of five matches against top players like Hubert Hurkacz and Tomas Machac. “It was a great way to kick off the year,” Fritz said, recalling the team triumph. His momentum carried into the Australian Open, where he cruised through his first two rounds, dropping just eight games against Jenson Brooksby and Cristian Garin. But a third-round loss to Gael Monfils in four sets hinted at trouble brewing. Unbeknownst to fans, Fritz was grappling with a nagging oblique injury, a Grade 1 strain on his right side, which he first felt before the Dallas Open. “I could serve fine, hit most shots with no pain,” he explained. “But certain shots were bothering me.”
Instead of resting, Fritz pressed on, competing in Delray Beach and Dallas, where he suffered early exits, and traveling to Acapulco for the Mexican Open. “In hindsight, it was a bad decision to play Delray and to go to Acapulco,” he admitted, acknowledging that his choice to “play through it” exacerbated the injury. By late February, he was forced to withdraw from the Mexican Open, shutting down for nearly two weeks to avoid rotational movements and allow healing. “I tried to just do fitness, do what I could, but I didn’t hit a ball,” he said. The hiatus, while necessary, disrupted his rhythm, and his return at Indian Wells saw him reach the fourth round but fall to Jack Draper in straight sets, a far cry from his 2022 title run there.
The injury’s ripple effects were evident in Fritz’s uneven season. Despite a career-high ranking of No. 4 achieved after reaching the 2024 US Open final and the ATP Finals championship match—where he fell to Jannik Sinner—his 2025 record stands at a modest 11-5. Early exits in Miami and Monte Carlo, where he opted to skip the Masters 1000 event to focus on recovery, underscored the toll of his earlier misjudgment. “I guess maybe it had already started to heal a little bit, but yeah, it definitely was prolonging it,” Fritz noted, reflecting on how his stubbornness delayed recovery. His Miami quarter-final run, with wins over Denis Shapovalov and Adam Walton, offered a glimmer of hope, but a loss to Matteo Berrettini halted his progress.
Fritz’s openness about his mistake highlights his growth as a player and person. The father of a young son, Jordan, whom he shares with ex-wife Raquel Pedraza, Fritz draws motivation from family and his desire to inspire. “I just need to keep improving so maybe at one point I can say, ‘Hey Jordan, I’m actually the best in the world,’” he once said on Netflix’s Break Point. In Madrid, where he faces a qualifier in the first round, Fritz is determined to turn his season around. “Hopefully we’re over it now,” he said of the injury, eyeing a deep run to bolster his clay-court credentials before Roland Garros.
As Fritz navigates the Madrid Open, his story is one of resilience amid adversity. The “bad decision” to play through pain may have cost him early in 2025, but his honesty and renewed focus signal a player ready to reclaim his place among the elite. With a potential third-round clash against top seeds like Alexander Zverev looming, Fritz’s Madrid campaign could be the spark to reignite his season, proving that even costly mistakes can pave the way for redemption.