Andy Roddick was, like many, just a tennis superstar born in the wrong era.
Were it not for the Big Three, who monopolised the sport with their brilliance, he likely would have plenty more elite honours, and be widely recognised as one of the finest players of his generation.
Still certainly a well-regarded player, having won the US Open and reached world number one as well, his transition into punditry following his tennis career has allowed him to shed light on just what it was like fighting through against such an unrelenting current.
And now, with his podcast, it allows others to tell stories about what a top man he was too.
John Isner recalls Wimbledon story from Nicolas Mahut match
Speaking on the Served with Andy Roddick podcast, John Isner was enlisted to chat about the current state of tennis and his remarkable career, which he called time on just last year.
Naturally, interest had to turn to his 2010 match with Nicolas Mahut at Wimbledon, a clash that lasted 11 hours and 5 minutes over three days and will almost definitely never be beaten as the longest-ever match of tennis.
However, whilst he did delve into his thoughts throughout it, it was actually something that Andy Roddick did mid-way through which caught Isner’s attention.
Thanking his compatriot, he recalled: ‘It was the second day that we went on at 2 o’clock, I don’t know exactly, and we had seven and a half or eight hours to finish one match.
‘The first four sets were like an hour and a half, because it was like one break each through four sets. It went by quickly and it was the second day that was the nutty day.
‘I don’t know what the heck you decided to do but when I got back to the locker room you were the only one there and you had a big pile of takeout food for me. It was pizza, pasta and mashed potatoes. It was everything you could imagine. I really appreciated that and I just devoured it all. I didn’t know where I was when that happened!’
Men’s American tennis is once again in a really strong place
Back when Isner and Roddick were two of the starring names of men’s American tennis, things weren’t half bad.
They won plenty of titles between them, and even a Grand Slam, but there was not exactly huge quality all across the board.
Nowadays however, there is a wealth of US talent, but they are yet to have that truly exceptional player capable of claiming the major titles.
That could soon come though, with Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul and Ben Shelton all enjoying steady rises in stature.
The former two in particular have made great strides, particularly in these elite tournaments, with both having reached the quarter-finals of Wimbledon this very year.
Should they maintain this trajectory, and add the likes of Frances Tiafoe, Marcos Giron, Seb Korda and more to the mix, things are certainly looking up.
And that doesn’t even scratch the surface of the remarkable array of women’s talent throughout American tennis too.
With that in mind, here’s the full Team USA roster ahead of the 2024 Paris Olympics.
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