Andy Roddick‘s retirement began on a bittersweet note.
The tennis pro, 30, lost to Juan Martin del Potro during the U.S. Open September 4. As his wife, Brooklyn Decker, cried in the stands, Roddick received a standing ovation from the crowd. The athlete then addressed the crowd in an emotional farewell speech.
“For the first time in my career, I’m not sure what to say,” a teary-eyed Roddick said. “Where do I start? Since I was a kid, I’ve been coming to this tournament. I felt lucky just to sit where all of you are sitting today, to watch this game and to see the champions who have come and gone and I’ve loved every minute of it.”
“It has been a road with a lot of ups, a lot of downs and a lot of great moments. I’ve appreciated your support along the way,” he continued. “I know I certainly haven’t made it easy for you at times, but I really do appreciate it and love you guys with all my heart. Hopefully I will come back to this place some day and I will see all of you again.”
“Last, I just want to say thank you to my family, my mom and my dad, who are up here, who gave me every chance. Thank you. And my support team, who’s been there with me forever. One thing I’m not scared of about retirement is the people that I go home to. They’re great and I appreciate it,” Roddick said. “One final thought: I’d like to say thank you to someone who’s not with us anymore, to Ken Meyerson [Roddick’s late agent, who passed away in October 2011]. I love you, and thank you, guys. Thank you.”
Roddick retired with 32 career titles, including a U.S. Open win in 2003. He announced his retirement August 31, saying he just felt “like it’s time. I don’t know that I’m healthy enough or committed enough to go another year. I’ve always wanted to, in a perfect world, finish at [the U.S. Open].”
Later that evening, his model/actress wife of three years, 25, attended the Shops at Target Fall Installment event in New York City, but Decker was too distraught to talk about her husband’s retirement. “That’ll make me cry,” she told Us Weekly.
