Spring 2021 marked the first time since the men’s tour began its ranking system in 1973 that there were no American guys ranked in the world’s top 30 players. Though really it had been over for a decade, basically since the night that Roddick went on Letterman, faux-hawk and all, and talked tennis with a restless aura of expectation, having no idea-him or us-that we would all start wandering the desert the next day. With him went our dominance, our age of empire. “You couldn’t be out partying and still be as successful with guys who were that serious about training.”Īt the age of 30, he put away his racquets. “The Studio 54 days all changed with Lendl,” James Blake explained, referring to the Czech-American champion who went on a winning streak in part based on his fitness. Basically, tennis players were spending less time at the club, more time in the gym. New technology, particularly the rise of polyester strings, enabled players to hit harder with more control, meaning fast balls with tons of spin that cleared the net higher and then dove down inside the lines, no matter their velocity, and bounced up like a fist flying at an opponent’s gut. First off, the game was changing: Training was more complex, nutrition was better appreciated. But Roddick’s generation also came of age during a period of significant shifts. The public didn’t mind if players stayed out late partying (they liked their players out partying) as long as they brought home the hardware. The terrain that greeted him and his cohort-James Blake, Mardy Fish, Robby Ginepri-was mountainous. “We won so many slams, so many titles,” Michael Chang said, “I don’t know if we’ll have another generation like that.”įlashback to the aughts, Roddick country. If anything, by the turn of the century, the glut of male tennis superstars from the States felt like overkill, even perhaps in need of correction. “It just seemed sort of second nature,” said Stan Smith. “If you look at previous generations, there has been an American at the absolute top of the men’s game forever,” Todd Martin, the world number 4 in 1999, told me. I haven’t even reached the late ’80s and the ’90s, perhaps the pinnacle of stars-and-stripes ball, with Andre Agassi, Michael Chang, Jim Courier, and Sampras competing to break records. Prodigal champion and “Superbrat” Johnny Mac himself. Not to forget the prodigal champion and “Brash Basher of Belleville” Jimmy Connors. The “Lithuanian Lion” Vitas Gerulaitis, aka “Broadway Vitas,” a hard-partying heartthrob who resembled a lifeguard with a side hustle in porn. Since ’68, the champion-not-sneaker Stan Smith. Notable names from history include Don Budge, Dick Savitt, Pancho Gonzales. Americans have since claimed the most Slam titles by far, with 52. Pro tennis as we know it started in 1968, with the dawn of the Open Era. “I'm hopeful, because Lord knows we need it.” That’s because for practically the sport’s entire history, besides a few Europeans and South Americans, and a couple rounds of “ Aussie, Aussie, Aussie,” Americans ruled the men's Grand Slams. “The short answer is, it's possible but doubtful,” four-time U.S. Judging by recent years, it is very unlikely that any of them will reach the final, or even the semis our top contender, John Isner, currently ranked 22 in the world, just lost in the first round. Open, which kicked off this week in New York, featured 20 Americans in the men’s singles draw. Roddick answered, “I don’t know about that.” But if you watch the clip a few times, it’s evident that Roddick did know about that, very much, as he fell into line behind other champions, and so did we. “You’ve got the world by the tail for heaven’s sakes!” Letterman exclaimed toward the end of the interview. And really nothing was surprising about any of this: Another handsome young man from California, New York, or Florida (in this case, Nebraska) had won the trophy of our home Grand Slam and showed up on late night television-if anything, it felt predictable, a template that had stood for decades and might go on forever, the biggest tennis trophies hoisted by American men, only now, for the turn of the century, in a feathery fauxhawk and distressed jeans. He faced questions about what it felt like to be 21 and the toast of the five boroughs, if not the country, and answered with a candor that would become his hallmark. He mentioned his actress girlfriend Mandy Moore. The tournament had just honored a retiring Pete Sampras, and Roddick was heir apparent. Open in 2003, went on the Late Show with David Letterman to talk about how it felt to be a champion. Everything was normal and nothing was weird when a spiky-haired Andy Roddick, after beating Juan Carlos Ferrero to win the U.S.
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