Roddick Talks Federer Dominance, What Happened To His Trophies

Andy Roddick has had a busy start to his induction weekend at the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport. He toured the museum on Friday, checking out his own exhibit as well as the rest of the museum, which is divided into three sections: The Birth of Tennis (1874-1918); The Popular Game (1918-1968); and The Open Era (1968-present).

Roddick also took time to talk with ATPWorldTour.com about a variety of subjects, including what exactly happened to his trophies and Roger Federer’s continued dominance.

Has it started to sink in yet, that you’re inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame?
I don’t know that it will ever be real, walking through here and seeing my superheroes… It’s just insane and I don’t know that that will ever make sense to me. It’s a pretty humbling experience walking through here. As I’ve said a couple times today I’m happy to here and spend my tennis forever with these legends in Newport.

You came so close to beating Roger Federer at Wimbledon. Do those matches look even more impressive now that Federer is still dominating?
No, I don’t think the fact that Roger is dominant at 35 somehow makes me better. I’m amazed at what he’s doing. I think we all, certainly me more than most, are aware of what he’s able to do on a tennis court. I certainly thought that he was in with a shot, maybe at Wimbledon and the US Open, to make a run at another Grand Slam.

To come back and be dominant at 35 is another conversation. I’m awed by that. I’m surprised by that. There’s not many things that Roger Federer could do to surprise me. It’s amazing to watch.

There’s been a lot of talk about your trophies. What exactly happened?
Yeah, this story kind of took on a life of its own. I don’t know that it was as dramatic as people want to make it out to be. We were just really moving houses. And the story gets retold and all of a sudden I have one trophy left.

I have more than one trophy left. I didn’t want someone to walk into our living room and it to be a shrine to a former career. I was there. I played the matches. I have the memories. They’re not going anywhere. So there were some that exited the premises.

It was more about you didn’t need the shrine then?
Honestly, let’s break it down to the simplest moment: Most people who are in my house probably know that I played tennis at some point. So I don’t know that I need shiny objects to try to enforce the fact that I played tennis at some point.