Roddick at the 2000 US Open

Andrew "Andy" Stephen Roddick, nicknamed A-Rod (born August 30, 1982), is an American tennis player who currently is the best tennis player representing his country (#1 USA) and is also one of the top players in the world (#3 World). Roddick is known for his explosive serves, powerful forehands, and charming off-court celebrity.

Tennis career

Roddick turned professional in 2000 at the age of 18 and became the youngest tennis player to end the year in the ATP top 200 (A record later broken by 16-year-old French Richard Gasquet in 2002). In 2001, he became the youngest player to end the year in the ATP top 20.

Roddick won his first Grand Slam title in the 2003 US Open when he beat Juan Carlos Ferrero in straight sets. In the semifinals, Roddick rallied from two sets down to beat David Nalbandian. Roddick's summer hardcourt record in 2003 was outstanding, with his first Masters Event.

Also in 2003, he became the youngest American, aged 21, and 2nd youngest player behind Lleyton Hewitt (Australia, 20 years, 8 months) to finish no. 1 in history of ATP rankings since 1973. He also became the first American to finish no. 1 since Andre Agassi in 1999.

On August 31, 2004 he served the fastest serve in US Open history - 244 km/h (152 mph). Earlier that year Roddick set the record for the fastest serve clocked at 246.2 km/h during a straight-set victory over Thailand's Paradorn Srichaphan in the quarter-finals of the Queens Club grass-court tournament. Andy Roddick was unexpectedly knocked out of the US Open of 2004 in a spectacular 5 set quarterfinal match against the up and coming big server Joachim Johansson. He finished 2004 ranked as the world's number 2, the USA's number 1, and the player with the most aces served.

Roddick is also part of the United States Davis Cup team, along with fellow teammates Mardy Fish, and Bob and Mike Bryan. Roddick and Fish played singles, while the Bryan twins played doubles. The team reached the 2004 Davis Cup finals in Seville Spain, but lost to the Spanish team. In 2005, Andre Agassi joined the team, and played as the number 2 player.

Roddick recently fired his coach of 18 months, Brad Gilbert . His new coach, Dean Goldfine , is the assistant coach to the US Davis Cup team.

Roddick's first tournament win in 2005 came in the SAP Open in San José, where he became the first to win the event in consecutive years since Mark Philippoussis in 1999 and 2000. The top-seeded Roddick breezed to a 6-0, 6-4 victory over Cyril Saulnier in 50 minutes to win the Open. The American star is the first to record a shutout set in the championship of this event since Arthur Ashe beat Guillermo Vilas in 1975.

Personal

Roddick was born in Omaha, Nebraska. He resides in Austin, Texas, and before that he lived in Boca Raton, Florida.

Roddick's father, Jerry, is an investor, and mother, Blanche, is director of the Andy Roddick Foundation. Roddick's brother, John, was an All-American tennis player at University of Georgia (1996-98), and now operates a tennis academy in San Antonio. Their oldest brother, Lawrence, a chiropractor in San Antonio, was an accomplished spring board diver and a member of U.S. Senior National Team.

Roddick is considered a major sports celebrity in the United States. Following his 2003 US Open win, Roddick embarked on a 12-hour media tour hitting major outlets including the Today Show, MTV, CNN and The Late Show with David Letterman, among others. He has been honored by throwing out the first pitch at several Major League Baseball games, most recently Game 2 of 2003 Oakland-Boston playoff series. After winning the tournament held by the NASDAQ, Roddick opened the stock market on August 20, 2003.

He hosted Saturday Night Live on November 8, 2003, becoming the second tennis player (Chris Evert) and only the 10th athlete in three decades to do so. He is also the winner of the 2004 ESPY award for best male tennis player. He was deemed Sexiest Athelete by People Magazine's December of 2003 issue of Sexiest Man Alive. Roddick has appeared in Vogue magazine too.

In 2005, Roddick also appeared on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, as well as VH1's 100 Most Wanted Bodies. Roddick was also on Punk'd after being tricked by Ashton Kutcher on his way to The Tonight Show.

Titles (18)

Singles (16)

Performance timeline

Doubles (2)

• 2001 Delray Beach
• 2002 Houston

External link

• Official website
• News and Info website
• Profile on ATP website
• Andy Roddick Foundation
• RoddickOnline.com: a fansite
• Andy the Ace: a fansite