"I own Roger Federer, that guy never had anything against me" - Andy Roddick jokingly recalls Miami 2008 win against Swiss
Andy Roddick recently had a little fun recalling his victory over Roger Federer at the 2008 Miami Open. Roddick's comments came after Tommy Paul and Jessica Pegula became the first two Americans in more than 15 years to down top-ranked players in the same week.
Pegula defeated WTA No. 1 Iga Swiatek in the semifinals of the Canadian Open on Saturday, after Paul had overcome ATP No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz in the quarterfinals on Friday. Roddick and Serena Williams had done the same 800 weeks ago; the Americans trounced then-top-ranked Federer and Justine Henin, respectively.
Talking to Tennis Channel, Roddick discussed his victory over the Swiss in Miami and joked:
"I own that guy, that guy never had anything against me. He told me after the match, ‘Andy I think you’re just totally in my head now.'"
Roddick downed the Swiss 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-3 in the Miami 2008 quarterfinal to register one of only three victories in 24 matches against the Swiss Maestro. After the win, the American admitted to getting emotional.
"Okay, so I sobbed a little. I think I was pretty relieved and happy and, you know, I saw my box -- My brother and my agent, they've seen me lose to him a lot of times and they shared a lot of nights with me afterward where they were trying to convince me I'm going to beat him one time. I was happy for them, too," Roddick said.
Andy Roddick has only three wins over Roger Federer
During his 12-year-long career, Andy Roddick faced Roger Federer 24 times but could manage to come out victorious only thrice. Interestingly, the former World No. 1s played seven quarterfinals, seven semifinals, and seven finals against each other.
The American's first victory over the Swiss came in 2003, during the Canada Masters. Roddick defeated Federer 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(3) in a nearly two-hour-long battle at the last-four stage.
The Swiss remained undefeated for the next 11 duels before Roddick went past him at the Miami Masters in 2008.
Four years later, in 2012, Roddick met the Swiss for the last time before his retirement. He registered his third and final success against the 20-time Major winner, triumphing 7-6(4), 1-6, 6-4.
At the age of 30, Roddick walked away from tennis after losing to Juan Martin del Potro at the 2012 US Open. Federer, on the other hand, hung up his racket at the 2022 Laver Cup in London.