The following article was written by Vito Ellison (@vblacklabel) for Blacklabel Tennis and Josh Meiseles (@TheSixthSet) for The Sixth Set, it appears on both sites.
It is a
rite of passage; a somber yet appropriate custom that those who have carried
the mantle of American tennis have partaken. Saying farewell to the
game you love is never easy, but having the opportunity to do so surrounded by
22,000 people chanting your name provides a poetic sense of closure.
Cavernous Arthur
Ashe Stadium never feels so united, so intimate as it does when an American
standard-bearer takes his final on-court wave nestled in the loving embrace of
his home crowd. Over the past decade, that scene has been replayed
repeatedly. Rather than abruptly end their runs mid-season, or play out
the string of European indoor events, most of the top American men have
chosen Flushing Meadows as the last stop in their journey as ATP
pros. Pete Sampras started the trend in legendary fashion, turning
back Andre Agassi for the 2002 US Open crown, in what would
be Sampras’ final match (though he didn’t officially retire until a
year later on that same court). Michael Chang, Todd Martin and Agassi continued
the tradition in 2003, ‘04 and ‘06, respectively. Last year it was Andy Roddick’s
turn to say goodbye to the Ashe faithful. In the footsteps of his
predecessors, Roddick showed flashes of his vintage form in his last
outing. He ultimately he suffered a valiant defeat, this time
at the hands of Juan Martin del Potro, before an appreciative crowd.
