Fish Calls It a Career in Flushing Meadows
Bested by fatigue, cramps and temperatures in the mid-90s, American Mardy Fish closed out his career Wednesday afternoon at Louis Armstrong Stadium, falling 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 5-7, 3-6 in over three hours at the U.S. Open to the 18th-seeded Feliciano Lopez. Having played just four matches total in 2015, Fish defeated Marco Cecchinato Monday to advance to round two in what he claimed is his 13th and final U.S. Open.
"I have got a lot of great memories. I've got a lot of good wins out here and have made a lot of really good friendships with almost everyone out here," said Fish post-match. "I'll miss that. It was just an awesome crowd, and it's a really nice memory to have on my final match. Obviously not the last set, but my final match."
Fish suffered from an anxiety disorder which started three years ago, a crippling illness that Fish detailed in a recent article on the Web site, The Players’ Tribune.
“Doing great wasn’t something that my frame of mind back then had time to process,” said Fish in the article. “All I could focus on was doing better. It was a double-edged sword.”
Fish had four break point chances midway through the fifth set, but as the temperatures rose in Flushing Meadows, fatigue and cramps set in, as Lopez broke in the eighth game before serving out victory.
With the loss Wednesday, Fish ends his career with a 52-38 record in Grand Slam tournaments, with his best result as a quarterfinalist three times, in 2007 at the Australian Open, where he lost to Andy Roddick; the 2008 U.S. Open, losing to Rafael Nadal; and at Wimbledon in 2011, also losing to Nadal.
Lopez goes on to face the number 10 seed, Canadian Milos Raonic, a 6-2, 6-4, 6-7, 7-6 winner Wednesday over Spain's Fernando Verdasco.
