Former No 1 Roddick to retire after US Open

Instead of following a slow out of the top of men's tennis at the edge of 20, Andy Roddick decided to move away from the sport.
Roddick, 30, announced at a press conference Thursday that will retire after the U.S. Open, which means a man who has been the face of men's tennis for the U.S. Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi retired may passing the torch as soon as this week.

The first opportunity for Roddick to extend their farewell tour will be Friday when he meets with Australian talent Bernard Tomic of 19 in the second round of the U.S. Open.

"In some big moments this year, I knew I was done," said Roddick. "Coming out of Wimbledon, I felt like I knew. Playing here, I do not know what it was, but I could not imagine that I am in a year. "Whatever my faults are, I always felt like I had never done anything halfway.

This is probably the first time in my career that I can sit here and say, I'm not sure I can put everything in her physically and emotionally. dont know if I disrespect the game by inertia at home. "

Roddick was the best player of American men for most of the decade, reaching number one in the world for the first time in November 2003, winning 32 ATP World Tour titles and 33 victories in the Davis Cup. Her only Grand Slam title was at the 2003 U.S. Open, but reached the finals at Wimbledon three times, falling to Roger Federer each time between a heartbreaker fifth in the 16 to 14 September 2009.

Output Roddick will shine a light on the lack of talented young American tennis to fill the void.
Hard-serving 27 years, John Isner into the top 10 for the first time this year, but its appearance 2011 / U.S. Open final 4 is the only time I did it to the final eight of a Grand Slam .

Veteran Mardy Fish, 30, reached number 7 in the world in August last year, but injuries and signs of age he was sent down to No. 25 a year later. And promising 24-year old Sam Querrey has recovered from an injury-filled 2011 season back in the top 30, but has yet to prove he can still get to the second week of a Grand Slam.

What legacy Roddick in sport depends on whether his career is in comparison to some of the other greats of his time, or on its own merits.

On one hand, he used his powerful serve and powerful straight following a decade of fixture 10 and keep America relevant in men's tennis. On the other hand, has never been able to say unequivocally that it was the best in his sport, always overshadowed by Roger Federer in his prime and overshadowed by the likes of Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray in the last years.

Injuries and age have reached Roddick this year more than any other, which undermines the power of their brand of service and forced to rely on basic strokes gradually decreasing. He lost in the third round or before the last Grand Slam tournament and fell to number 22 in the ATP rankings.