"They say don't meet your heroes, I say, if your hero is Roger, you should look for that introduction"- Andy Roddick on Roger Federer
In a recent podcast, former World No. 1 Andy Roddick discussed his respect for Roger Federer and revealed what made him envious of his former rival.
Roger Federer and Roddick's rivalry was once the talk of the town. Starting from the 2001 season onwards, the duo have been fierce rivals and have frequently battled against one another in the latter stages of many tournaments.
Federer had a 21-3 advantage in the head-to-head and their rivalry ranks as the 14th most active men's rivalry in the Open Era in terms of the quantity of matches played. The duo played some iconic matches in their illustrious rivalry and the 2009 Wimbledon final was one of the most thrilling and epochal Grand Slam title clashes.
Andy Roddick revealed his "jealousy" of Federer when speaking on the Kasich and Klepper Podcast. He claimed that the Swiss' personality made him more envious than any of his accomplishments.
"It’s his ease of operation, right?" Roddick said. "If the way that he’s able to go about his business, I would, you know, play a practice match, be out there for two hours. I’d play it just like I was gonna play three days later in the first run of a slam and I’d walk by Roger’s court and he’s laughing and joking. And he is relaxed."
"That was where my jealousy came in: the way that he was able to kind of tend to his responsibilities away from the court, kind of always be in a good mood, which was incredibly annoying for the rest of us moody people," he added.
Additionally, Roddick called Federer a "great human" and encouraged those whose hero is the Swiss player to meet him.
"He has this ease of operation which is creates envy but he's a great human," Roddick said. "They say don't meet your heroes i say if your hero’s Fed you should look for that introduction."
Roger Federer to make a comeback later this year
Roger Federer withdrew from the 2022 Wimbledon Championships and has been on the sidelines for over a year after losing to Hubert Hurkacz in the quarterfinals of SW19 last year. Since then, the Swiss has undergone knee surgery and has been resting, rehabilitating and training for a comeback to the tour.
The 40-year-old announced that he will participate in his home tournament in Basel later this year and the 2022 Laver Cup, where he will join hands with Rafael Nadal in doubles.
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The Swiss also recently attended a special event to commemorate Centre Court's 100th anniversary. There, he stated that despite missing a year due to a knee injury, he expects to play Wimbledon "one more time."
“I hope I can come back one more time. I’ve missed it here,” Federer said.