Andy Roddick's struggle for America
American men’s tennis has come up a bit short in terms of success in recent times. There are a few good players to name but we haven’t seen a great player emerge from a country where tennis is played under lights with noisy fans.
There is a growing fear among the tennis circles in America that the reputation of being the best in the game will be lost. Connors, McEnroe, Sampras and Agassi are some of the American greats who flourished and set a benchmark. After the early exit of Andy
Roddick from the Australian Open it has become more evident that USTA is in need of another great player. Former US Open Champion has managed to put up a good fight against Roger Federer, undoubtedly the greatest player of all time but Swiss No.1’s mental
toughness and skills on the court have proved to be too much for him. Roddick and his fellow American’s performances have highlighted the fact that USA is no longer a dominant force in the men’s tennis world.
Since the start of open era there had been two periods when ATP was ruled by Americans. 1970 to 1980 was a golden patch when dominant Jimmy Connors and McEnroe ruled the tennis world along with Swede Bjorn Borg, featuring in several
Grand Slam titles finals. The second successful period saw the rivalry of Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi who were absolutely brilliant through the 90’s until the start of the 21st century sharing 22 Grand Slam titles between them. Their encounters
in 1990, 2001 and 2002 in the US Open finals will be remembered for long time.
In terms of the new talent coming in and backups, there is very little to talk about. James Black’s only achievement was witnessed in 2006 when he reached the final of Masters Cup, which he lost in straight sets by the way. More
recently, American No. 2 Mardy Fish, 18th seeded Sam Querry and young Ryan Sweeting early exit from the Australian Open 2011 left the fans in disarray.
It seems like 2003 US Open Champion is the only one who is carrying the hopes of American nation right now. But why one wouldn’t rest his hopes on him when he started off his career so brightly, beating Sampras, Ivanisevic and
Gustavo soon after he turned professional. His rocket like serves and his “never say no” attitude quickly grabbed him a place in the World top ten. He has stayed in the top ten since then however since the arrival of Federer and Nadal he has found himself
lost in the darkness, being outplayed by the top players on several occasions. Critics have spotlighted the fact that he is very limited in certain important aspects of the game and that he relies too much on his serve. More sadly, Roddick was devastated in
the fourth round of Australian Open 2011 losing to guy who was known to the world as Federer’s doubles partner. He may have the fastest serve in the world but lacks the fire power and penetrating ground strokes to win crucial points. He just does not ring
the bell anymore unluckily.
2003 US Open title was the last major tournament won by an American male and it has been seven year since an American male player has won a major single championship. Surely for now, Americans will pin their hopes on Roddick. Whenever
he decides enough is enough, Roddick will be missed as a tennis soldier who did his best for his country like the others who came before him.
Disclaimer: The ideas expressed in the article are the writer’s own personal views and has nothing to do with bettor.com’s editorial policy.
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