Taylor Fritz is the most consistently successful American men's player since Andy Roddick, and while he might not reach the level Roddick did by reaching No. 1, Fritz does have a weapon that could keep him in contention for winning a major: When his serve is working well, he is nearly unstoppable.
Zizou Bergs is no pushover, though. He is ranked in the top 30 on the ATP Tour and has a potent serve of his own. His issue is that it doesn't match Fritz's level, and the Belgian learned that again in the first round of the 2026 Citi Open.
The two players had only met once before, and that was earlier this year on the grass courts of the Halle Open. The American won in three tight sets. He was clearly in no mood to take any chances on the hard courts of the Washington, DC tournament, however. He started the match with an ace, and that set the tone for what would be to come.
Taylor Fritz defeats Zizou Bergs in the first round of the 2026 Citi Open
The only odd part in the opening set came at the end. After getting a break of Bergs in the fourth game of the set, the American simply needed to keep holding. After dropping just two points in his first four holds, he faced three break points and five deuces to get to 6-3. He eventually was able to take the set, however, and had to breathe a sigh of relief.
In the second set, Fritz got another break early, and while his serve form had dipped a bit, he was still able to keep holding. Any time that Bergs sniffed a chance of a comeback, the American would be able to get the Belgian out of position with another well-placed serve.
Bergs is certainly not a bad player. He didn't even play poorly against Fritz. The issue is that his best form wouldn't be as good as Fritz's, and his mid-level form isn't as good as the same for the American. Fritz didn't have to strain to win, and he wasn't truly pushed. He got the breaks in each set he needed, and he rode his serve to a win.
In the end, Bergs tried to keep putting pressure on Fritz, but he could never break through. The American took the second set 6-4. Even though the American landed less than 50 percent of his first serves, he won 80 percent of those serves he landed. He also won 71 percent of his second serves.
Next for Taylor Fritz in the second round of the 2026 Citi Open is the winner of the match on Tuesday between fellow American Tommy Paul and Poland's Kamil Majchrzak. Paul will be the heavy favorite, and if he plays his longtime friend Fritz, it will be the two players' seventh meeting. They each have three wins in their previous six matches.
