More than an hour after hitting one last shot as a professional tennis player, then delivering one last, voice-wavering speech to an adoring US Open audience, Andy Roddick exited the locker room one last time.
Accompanied by his wife and other family members, a black baseball cap tugged low over his eyes, Roddick slung a racket bag off his aching right shoulder, the one responsible for so many high-speed aces, violent forehands and the most recent Grand Slam title by an American man, and tossed the equipment in the back of a waiting van. He won’t need that any longer.
The 2003 US Open champion Roddick headed into retirement with a 6-7 (1) 7-6 (4) 6-2 6-4 loss to 2009 champion Juan Martin del Potro in the fourth round at Flushing Meadows on Wednesday.
“If we do badly, then it costs us something; if we do well, we get great things. This was about something bigger. It wasn’t about ranking points or paychecks or anything else,” Roddick said. “This week I felt like I was 12 years old, playing in a park. It was extremely innocent. It was fun. I enjoyed it.”
“People always try to beat him up: ‘You should’ve won more.’ No, he got the maximum out of his game,’’ said Roddick’s coach, Larry Stefanki.
During an on-court address to the crowd, Roddick got choked up, particularly when making a reference to his longtime agent, Ken Meyerson, who died last year. “It’s been a road of a lot of ups, a lot of downs, a lot of great moments. I’ve appreciated your support along the way,” Roddick told the crowd. The Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd, however, showed their appreciation of Roddick with cheers for him.
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