As Roger Federer’s head was still coming to terms with being labelled the greatest male tennis player of all time, his opponent Andy Roddick was once again in the Wimbledon background.
It was a repeat of the painful scenes he experienced in the same tournament against the same player in 2004 and 2005.
Although no Grand Slam final loss is easy to take, one could sense that the 2009 Wimbledon final was by far Roddick’s hardest defeat to swallow in a career which has seen him contest a Grand Slam final five times.
Roddick’s only Grand Slam triumph was in 2003, when he won the US Open, defeating Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero in the final.
Although the American certainly certified himself as a tennis superstar early in his career, his past few seasons have seen him tumble down the elite list of those that can truly challenge Federer’s standing in men’s tennis.
Names such as Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray took Roddick’s former position as the player that would most likely give the Swiss maestro a run for his money.
In the 2009 Wimbledon final, however, a new and improved Roddick displayed a lot more strings to his bow than in previous years, and pushed the great Federer to the limit.
Unlike in previous meetings between the pair, Roddick made things happen against an opponent that has had it all over him throughout his career.
Even Roddick’s swift service game, which has always been the basis for his victories, looked to have improved immensely, judging from the amount of unplayable body serves that Federer received.
The Swiss player found himself under immense pressure for the first time in a tournament where he had only dropped one set prior to the final.
Although Federer once again showed his championship winning qualities to register the second set in a tiebreaker, Roddick also displayed the necessary mental capacity to cast aside the setback.
Despite losing the third set, Roddick responded brilliantly in the fourth to establish an early break and win the set 6-3.
The fifth and deciding set ultimately saw Roddick succumb to Federer’s status as the greatest Tennis player of all time, but only after a thirty game marathon that needed over ninety minutes to decide which player would cement themselves in Wimbledon history.
Although it was Roddick who was once again left as a runner up against the Swiss maestro, he pledged in his speech that he’d hope to one day hold aloft Tennis’s most prestigious Grand Slam trophy.
No doubt if he continues with his present form, Roddick will eventually garner a deserved maiden Wimbledon crown that may just turn around a Grand Slam finals record that says little about just how good and improved a player he really is.
Alex de Minaur has missed out on the chance of a lifetime to beat Rafael Nadal on clay in successive tournaments, blown away by…
Former Wimbledon champion, double grand slam winner and Australian Open finalist Garbine Muguruza has announced her retirement from tennis at the age of 30.…
Rafael Nadal has hailed the brilliance of Alex de Minaur, calling him "a great player" after the Australian forced the Spanish legend to say…
The clay season promises to be one of high level and tight margins. With the Monte Carlo open just around the corner, it will…
In incredible scenes, defending champion Carlos Alcaraz's quarter-final clash with Alexander Zverev at Indian Wells was halted abruptly due to a "bee invasion." Less…
Marathon man Jordan Thompson has finally clinched his first ATP Tour title, with the Australian upsetting Norwegian Casper Ruud to lift the trophy in…
