Chronicles of Roddick
A-Rod calls it quits after 12 years on tour carrying US tennis, in a post-Sampras and Agassi era. After arriving on the scene in 2000, he benefited being sandwiched between 2 golden eras and making hay while the sun shone. Had he found a way to get in Federer’s head, he would have walked off with much more silverware. Narrowly losing the 2009 Wimbledon final to Federer (and 2 others to him) was his best chance at a Wimbledon title. His best rival turned out to have been Lleyton Hewitt, who’s contrasting style led to some great matches by two tenacious competitors.
His serve and forehand combination won him many matches and he always beat the players he should have beaten. Mentally he was strong but had a hot head. Still though, this did not derail him like it did Safin or Nalbandian. In 2010 he had a great run reaching 2 consecutive Masters finals (winning Miami) and it looked like he could stay relevant, but the sheer dominance of top 10 left no room for Andy. After shouldering US tennis’ expectations for so many years, he can say he had a great career and inspired a new generation of A-Rods like Ryan Harrison, Jack Sock, Ryan Sweeting, Steve Johnson and many others.
Reason to retire: Age
Career titles: 32
Grand Slams: 1 (US Open 2003)
Masters Titles: 5
Win/Loss Record: 607/209
Career High Ranking: 1 (2003)
Finest moment: Winning the US Open and reaching world number 1 in 2003.
Famous For: Frequent outbursts, losing to Roger Federer, entertaining press conferences and a 152 mph serve.
Watch: Andy announcing his retirement