Andy Roddick enjoyed a superb career, although Grand Slam finals went against him more often than not.
Roger Federer had trouble with Roddick’s serve in the 2009 Wimbledon final, but the Swiss star still came out on top.
And that was one of four such finals between the pair, with Federer beating Roddick in three Wimbledon finals and one US Open final.
Fortunately, the American was able to clinch such success, beating Juan Carlos Ferrero in the 2003 US Open final.
The former world number one is doing his best to keep tabs on the current situation on the ATP Tour, with Roddick impressed by Novak Djokovic.
Andy Roddick apologises to Pete Sampras after losing 2009 Wimbledon final
Once upon a time, however, Roddick was in the thick of the action on the court, with his 2009 Wimbledon final with Federer having gone down as one of the greatest matches of all time.
After over four hours of first-class action between the pair, the latter beat the former 5–7, 7–6(8–6), 7–6(7–5), 3–6, 16–14.
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And despite defeat, and indeed the manner of it, the runner-up was gracious, saying on court: “I’m one of the lucky few who gets cheered for, so thank you for that. I just want to say congratulations to Roger, he deserves everything he gets, so well done Roger.”
Roddick then looked up to the Royal Box at Wimbledon towards fellow icon Pete Sampras, simply saying: “I tried, sorry Pete.”
Roger Federer surpassed Pete Sampras’s Grand Slam record at Wimbledon 2009
Federer’s 2009 Wimbledon success was hugely significant, when he surpassed Sampras’s tally of 14 Grand Slam titles.
Unable to stop the Swiss ace in that regard, Roddick felt the need to jokingly apologise to his fellow American.
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He did, of course, do his utmost to prevent that from happening, but Federer was simply in his element on the Wimbledon grass.
His eight titles at the major championship are more than any other man, with Sampras having finished his career with seven.
| Result | Year | Tournament | Surface | Opponent | Score |
| Win | 2003 | US Open | Hard | Juan Carlos Ferrero | 6–3, 7–6(7–2), 6–3 |
| Loss | 2004 | Wimbledon | Grass | Roger Federer | 6–4, 5–7, 6–7(3–7), 4–6 |
| Loss | 2005 | Wimbledon | Grass | Roger Federer | 2–6, 6–7(2–7), 4–6 |
| Loss | 2006 | US Open | Hard | Roger Federer | 2–6, 6–4, 5–7, 1–6 |
| Loss | 2009 | Wimbledon | Grass | Roger Federer | 7–5, 6–7(6–8), 6–7(5–7), 6–3, 14–16 |
Djokovic is just one behind the pair, with a record-equalling success certainly possible this year given he just reached the Miami Open final.
He ultimately lost to Jakub Mensik, and while it was a hard-court event, he will take great confidence for the near future.
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