The Evolution of Andy Roddick's On-Court Style
The U.S. Open kicked off this week, but if you were to peruse the draw over on the men’s side, you’d be hard pressed to find anything American about it. Men’s tennis has been devoid of a star grown on American soil for some time now. Donald Young, once considered the next big thing, was Roger Federer’s rag doll in their first-round match last night, and Young has just three total wins in all of 2012. John Isner is known as much for his marathon 11-hour match against Nicolas Mahut at Wimbledon in 2010 as he is for anything else. Sure, Mardy Fish is ranked 23rd in the world, but that’s a large gap under the championship caliber play of an Andy Murray or a Roger Federer. While James Blake and Andy Roddick cling to the twilight years of their respective careers, the future of American men’s tennis seems, well, bleak.
But back in the early 2000’s, a young American took tennis by storm with his punishing serve and innovative style. You may not recognize him anymore—his contract with Lacoste has pushed his on-court look over to the conservative side—but Andy Roddick used to be a bit of a rebel.
STACK takes a look back at how Roddick’s style has evolved over the years.
In 2000, Roddick signed a five-year contract with Reebok, and the brand got to work creating a look that fit the personality of the budding star: young, loud and powerful.
One of the best pieces Reebok created for Roddick was his line of trucker hats. With a multitude of solid colorways adorning the front, paired with mesh in the back, Roddick’s hats oozed coolness. The black front and white mesh back looked the sharpest, but Reebok wasn’t afraid to be bold and drop something like a green front and blue mesh model.
(Photo via Gothamist)
Oddly, only two years removed from winning his only major at the U.S. Open in 2003, Roddick and Reebok decided to go their separate ways. Lacoste then made its move and swooped in on the young star. Roddick’s Lacoste hats are much more reserved, with the signature alligator logo perched atop a solid color, usually white or black.
(Photo Via Tennis Served Fresh)
In the shirt department, Reebok’s efforts ranged from mild to loud. On the mild end of the spectrum, Roddick’s shirt mixed a white base, a blue stripe and sleeves somewhere in the design. But when he felt like making a statement, Roddick wore something like his 2004 U.S. Open outfit, a shirt-and-hat combo that looked like someone made Roddick stand against the wall while they threw a bucket of paint at him. It was a look as fiery as his temper on the court.
(Photo via The Tribune)
Lacoste hasn’t dared be as bold with any of its apparel for Roddick, but their shirts are a little less tame than their hats. This black shirt and white vertical stripes combination from the 2009 U.S. Open was a winner, as was the striped polo from the Madrid Open in 2011.
(Photo via Tennis Served Fresh)
Reebok also laced up Roddick with some kicks, the most popular being Reebok’s Figjams, shown below. Roddick has since signed a shoe deal with Babalot.
(Photo via Tennis Warehouse)
As a rising tennis star with a 140-mph serve, Roddick was bold in his style choices with Reebok. He spiked his hair, wore trucker hats and had his own shoe. Now, he’s settled down. He married Brooklyn Decker and signed a deal with Lacoste, grew out some facial hair and toned down his look. So which Roddick do you like better? The Reebok or Lacoste version?
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The Evolution of Andy Roddick's On-Court Style
The U.S. Open kicked off this week, but if you were to peruse the draw over on the men’s side, you’d be hard pressed to find anything American about it. Men’s tennis has been devoid of a star grown on American soil for some time now. Donald Young, once considered the next big thing, was Roger Federer’s rag doll in their first-round match last night, and Young has just three total wins in all of 2012. John Isner is known as much for his marathon 11-hour match against Nicolas Mahut at Wimbledon in 2010 as he is for anything else. Sure, Mardy Fish is ranked 23rd in the world, but that’s a large gap under the championship caliber play of an Andy Murray or a Roger Federer. While James Blake and Andy Roddick cling to the twilight years of their respective careers, the future of American men’s tennis seems, well, bleak.
But back in the early 2000’s, a young American took tennis by storm with his punishing serve and innovative style. You may not recognize him anymore—his contract with Lacoste has pushed his on-court look over to the conservative side—but Andy Roddick used to be a bit of a rebel.
STACK takes a look back at how Roddick’s style has evolved over the years.
In 2000, Roddick signed a five-year contract with Reebok, and the brand got to work creating a look that fit the personality of the budding star: young, loud and powerful.
One of the best pieces Reebok created for Roddick was his line of trucker hats. With a multitude of solid colorways adorning the front, paired with mesh in the back, Roddick’s hats oozed coolness. The black front and white mesh back looked the sharpest, but Reebok wasn’t afraid to be bold and drop something like a green front and blue mesh model.
(Photo via Gothamist)
Oddly, only two years removed from winning his only major at the U.S. Open in 2003, Roddick and Reebok decided to go their separate ways. Lacoste then made its move and swooped in on the young star. Roddick’s Lacoste hats are much more reserved, with the signature alligator logo perched atop a solid color, usually white or black.
(Photo Via Tennis Served Fresh)
In the shirt department, Reebok’s efforts ranged from mild to loud. On the mild end of the spectrum, Roddick’s shirt mixed a white base, a blue stripe and sleeves somewhere in the design. But when he felt like making a statement, Roddick wore something like his 2004 U.S. Open outfit, a shirt-and-hat combo that looked like someone made Roddick stand against the wall while they threw a bucket of paint at him. It was a look as fiery as his temper on the court.
(Photo via The Tribune)
Lacoste hasn’t dared be as bold with any of its apparel for Roddick, but their shirts are a little less tame than their hats. This black shirt and white vertical stripes combination from the 2009 U.S. Open was a winner, as was the striped polo from the Madrid Open in 2011.
(Photo via Tennis Served Fresh)
Reebok also laced up Roddick with some kicks, the most popular being Reebok’s Figjams, shown below. Roddick has since signed a shoe deal with Babalot.
(Photo via Tennis Warehouse)
As a rising tennis star with a 140-mph serve, Roddick was bold in his style choices with Reebok. He spiked his hair, wore trucker hats and had his own shoe. Now, he’s settled down. He married Brooklyn Decker and signed a deal with Lacoste, grew out some facial hair and toned down his look. So which Roddick do you like better? The Reebok or Lacoste version?