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Former World No.1 Andy Roddick sarcastically trolled an online fan when the latter pointed out that the American was not good enough when compared with the trio of Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal.
Roddick was one of the most dominant players on the ATP tour from 2003-2010. In each of these years, the American finished in the top 10 rankings showcasing his consistency. The serve was the dominant feature of Roddick's play that helped him win multiple trophies, the biggest being the 2003 US Open.
Roddick's rise in tennis coincided with the arrival of Roger Federer on the ATP scene. The Swiss and the American met each other multiple times with the bulk of the victories going in favor of Federer.
However, in the final match of their rivalry, Roddick emerged victorious at the 2012 Miami Open. In an interview on MSN.com, Roddick talked about that match and stated that he was always up for the fight despite a gulf of talent between him and Federer.
"I'd go into a Wimbledon final, I had a puncher's chance, but I believed that not that I was better, but that I could win. There's a difference between the two, I knew, at scale, I was never better than Roger Federer… but on a given day, can I throw a right-hand uppercut and beat Roger? Yeah," said Roddick.
Referring to this interview, a fan on X (formerly Twitter), claimed that Roddick was never at the same level as the Big Three.
He was never better than Nadal or Djokovic either!" said a fan.
Roddick replied to this comment by sarcastically pointing out that he had not reached the moon either.
"I also never walked on the moon," said Roddick.
Another fan pointed out that there was no shame in being second best to the likes of Federer, Nadal and Djokovic.
"Wait why is @andyroddick being attacked for not being as good as Fed, Nadal or Novak? That would apply to every other person who has ever picked up a racquet," they wrote on X.
Roddick then replied referring to the presence of the internet, which had facilitated people to pass their opinions with ease and freedom.
"Because internet" said Roddick.
Roddick had a losing record against Federer and Nadal, but had a winning record against Djokovic
The Federer-Roddick rivalry was an extremely skewed record in favor of the Swiss. In a total of 24 matches, the American managed to win only three matches against Federer.
Federer won all four Grand Slam finals contested between the duo. However, the Wimbledon final of 2009 was a marquee match between the two, as the final went on for more than four hours with the final set going as far as 16-14 in favor of the Swiss.
Against Nadal too, Roddick had a losing head-to-head record of 3-7. However, in Grand Slams, the record was tied at 1-1.
Roddick, meanwhile, has a winning head-to-head record of 5-4 against Djokovic. Between 2009 and 2010, Roddick had a winning streak of four matches against Djokovic across the Masters 1000 series and Grand Slams.
