Taylor Fritz explains what he struggled with most at the Japan Open despite beating Gabriel Diallo.

Taylor Fritz survived a scare against Gabriel Diallo in his opening round match at the Japan Open.

The World No. 5 arrived in Tokyo as the number two seed, behind Carlos Alcaraz, and big things were expected from the American.

Fritz had a Laver Cup to remember as he picked up two wins over two top 10 players in Alcaraz and Alexander Zverev.

The star made it through to the second round of the Japan Open with a victory against Diallo, but he needed three sets and a deciding tie-break.

Taylor Fritz struggled with energy and jet lag at the Japan Open
The four-day turnaround between the Laver Cup and the Japan Open was something that Fritz struggled to adapt to in Tokyo.

“It’s definitely a tough turnaround,” said Fritz after confirming a second-round match against Nuno Borges.

“I think the biggest thing for me today was the energy,” continued the American. “It’s really tough to match the energy that you have last week, with Andre [Agassi] on the bench, the team on the bench, everyone going crazy.”

The star also blamed the lengthy travel as one of the reasons why he only defeated Diallo narrowly. “I’m obviously a little jet lagged as well, so that comes into it.”

“I really just had to find it and get it going,” said Fritz, who will fancy his Japan Open chances. “It was a really, really tough match to play today.”

The American is in the bottom half of the draw, which has already lost number five and six seeds, Tomas Machac and Ugo Humbert.

Taylor Fritz reaches landmark hard court win at the Japan Open
Fritz may not have won a tournament on the American hard court swing, but his performances have helped him reach a landmark at the Japan Open.

Fritz’s win against Diallo was his 30th hard-court victory of 2025, a year in which he has reached the quarter-finals of the US Open and the third round of the Australian Open.

The American is yet to win a hard court tournament this year, with his only two wins coming on grass in Stuttgart and Eastbourne.

Fritz’s last hard court tournament win came at the Atlanta Open in 2023 when he defeated Aleksandar Vukic in three sets.