Defining Andy Roddick's Career

Andy Roddick has decided to retire after the US Open this year.  Barring he does not make a spectacular run and win the tournament (I think he will lose in the Second Round to Bernard Tomic), a question arises.  How do we define Andy Roddick's roller coaster career?

Do we define it as a disappointment?  The number one junior tennis player in the entire world at one time, Andy Roddick won two majors as just a junior.  The future could never look brighter.  But, the future is not the present, and that could not have been more clear with Roddick.  Andy Roddick made it to four Finals.  He only won one.  He lost every Finals at Wimbeldon, and he could never fully live up to the expectations he received as a junior.  Another issue, injuries.  It seemed as if Roddick was never 100%, and always injured.  Roddick is a hot head too.  The smallest thing seems to upset him so much more than it should.  It seems like everything got in Roddick's. way to greatness.

Do we define it as a success?  Not only did he get to be the number one juniors player in the world, winning two majors as a junior, he also won a regular major title.  In 2003, at the US Open, he won his major championship.  He beat Juan Carlos Ferrero in straight sets to win the title.  This catapulted him to the number one ranking in the world.  A major championship and the number one ranking in the entire world, what more can one ask?  In a world where today Federer, Nadal, and Djokovic have won 29 of the last 30 majors, winning a major seems all the more valuable.

If you ask for my opinion, I think it is a mixed bag.  Roddick has done a lot of great things.  We cannot forget his major, or his two junior majors, or the number one at both the professional and junior level.  However, we must also not forget the constant anger explosions, missed opportunities, and annoying injuries that have plagued his career.  He has achieved a lot, but he could have achieved a lot more.

Andy Roddick's career might end today against Bernard Tomic in the Second Round of the 2012 US Open.  But if Andy has any fight left in him, then he will be going for that first-place trophy.  He owes it to himself after such a crazy career.