WATCH: Taylor Fritz comes under fire for mocking opponent’s height
NewsSaturday, 03 January 2026 at 21:55
Taylor Fritz angered many tennis fans with his gesture during his opening match of the 2026 United Cup.
Fritz once again teamed up with the American No. 1 player on the WTA Tour, Coco Gauff, to defend their title at the United Cup. The duo won the competition last year and wanted to do the same this year, entering it as the top seeds.
Team USA was a massive favorite in their first tie against Argentina. That tie kicked off with Fritz taking on Sebastian Baez. There are some huge differences between the two. Fritz is obviously the more successful and the higher-ranked player, but he is also taller. The American stands at 6'5" (196cm) while his opponent belongs among the shortest players on the ATP Tour at 5'7" (170cm).
Fritz beat Baez in their first five meetings, leading the H2H 5-0 as they stepped onto the court in Perth's RAC Arena. Things were going well for the American No. 1 early on, as he was 6-4 and 2-0 up, which was also the moment when he mocked his opponent's height with a celebration often used in the NBA.
Ultimately, that decision backfired, as Fritz shockingly lost the match in three sets. Baez beat him 4-6, 7-5, 6-4, getting revenge for his opponent's gesture. That win, however, didn't help Argentina to secure the tie, as Coco Gauff's heroics meant the United States won 2-1.
But many fans didn't focus on Team USA's win; instead, they focused on Fritz's antics. Many of the fans commenting on X (formerly Twitter) were disappointed to see Fritz's gesture towards his opponent. One of the fans posted:
"Up a set and a break, but it's not enough for him, Team USA, Fritz, also has to make fun of the height of his opponent."
Taylor Fritz struggles with an injury at the United Cup
The 2026 United Cup might be a tournament to forget for Fritz, as not only did he receive backlash for his actions, but he also appears to be struggling with a knee injury. He spoke about it after his loss to Baez, admitting he has struggled with knee pain for some time.
"I mean, I really just need to be playing points and be healthy. I think that's the biggest thing. I spent the majority -- pretty much the entirety of the off-season trying to rehab my knee tendinopathy, but that's a thing that takes months and months to get better."
"I didn't get to play a lot of points because I'm trying to not push it too hard. So it's just going to be a struggle of trying to get the reps in and get the points and matches in to start feeling like I'm comfortable while juggling that while still managing my knee pain because I'm going to try to play through and keep doing the rehab while traveling and getting better, but if that doesn't work in a couple of months, then I am just going to have to full stop and fix it."
Fritz's coach, Michael Russell, who is also Team USA's coach at the United Cup, was asked about his player's injury after the tie, but he didn't really want to speak about it.
"No (smiling). Sebastian played really well. It's probably the highest level that he's played against Taylor in their six meetings. Taylor was up a set and a break, and I think a little bit of fatigue and hasn't played as much tennis and had the volume in the off-season. It kind of showed today."
"It's a little sore, his knee. He's coming off the off-season and was mostly focusing on recovery and rehab, but I mean, it's part of the sport. You play three sets. It's going to be physical. At the end of the day, then you just assess how you feel afterwards. We'll see tomorrow. Hopefully he'll be ready to go on Monday."
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