2022 ATP Finals, Day 3: Ram stays perfect, Fritz hits shot of the week

Facing ad-out at 2-2, the American approached the net off his forehand wing, sticking to the attacking gameplan that helped fuel his comeback. When Ruud dipped a passing shot low down the line, Fritz dove to the floor and flashed his athleticism and touch to play back an incredible backhand-volley winner.

So graceful was Fritz's flight that he was able to pop up in position to chase down the next ball, had Ruud been able to track down the stunning volley.

While he was unable to ride the momentum of the highlight-reel shot to victory, Fritz is still very much alive in the round-robin tournament with his 1-1 record. He will next face Felix Auger-Aliassime on Thursday in what essentially amounts to a quarterfinal: the winner moves on to the semis, while the loser will see his tournament come to an end.

"It's going to be a lot of big hitting," Fritz said, previewing the matchup. "Kind of honestly how every match is going to go on this court. It's going to come down to protecting your serve well, maybe making something happen on the return game. It's really going to just come down to holding serve and playing my service games well," he said, alluding to the fast indoor conditions at the Pala Alpitour.

The American won the only previous match the pair have played as professionals, a 6-7(6), 6-4, 6-4 win for Team USA at this year's ATP Cup.

Both Fritz and Auger-Aliassime beat Rafael Nadal and lost to Ruud, the American earning a 7-6(3), 6-1 win over the top-seeded Nadal to mark his ATP Final debut in style.

Read More: Fritz powers past Nadal in dream debut