Andy Roddick shows support as Ernesto Escobedo reveals he is targeted by colleagues due to his stutter

Former World No. 1 and US Open winner Andy Roddick extended his support to Ernesto Escobedo after the Mexican's recent social media post discussing his stutter.

Escobedo, born in Los Angeles, is Mexico’s highest-ranked tennis player. The 26-year-old reached a career-high ATP ranking of 67 on July 2017 and is currently ranked 446th in the world. The Mexican won the ITF event in Xalapa, Mexico, in May this year. He claiming the title by defeating American Aidan Mayo, 6-3, 6-4.

Escobedo recently took to social media to have a candid discussion about his stutter—a speech disability he has dealt with since his childhood. The Mexican stated that he wishes to aid people who might be experiencing the same troubles as him.

“I want to use my platform. If I can help out one person out there, it would mean the world to me… If there’s anyone that’s going through the same thing, feel free to reach out. I would love to talk to you about it. You’re not alone,” Escobedo tweeted.

Andy Roddick responded in support for Escobedo, telling the Mexican to ignore the haters and focus on his game and the people who are an asset to him. The former World No. 1 stated that he is was a fan of the 26-year-old.

“Don’t listen to idiots who don’t fully understand what you’re going through. Keep grinding. Do your tennis, and invest time in people who benefit you and your interests. Ignore the others. You have a fan in me brother,” Roddick tweeted

Escobedo thanks Andy Roddick for his show of support

2022 Bendigo International: Day 3

Ernesto Escobedo expressed his thanks to Andy Roddick for his words of encouragement, saying that Roddick has inspired him since the early days of his tennis career. Escobedo thanked the American on Twitter and strived to "keep grinding".

“Thank you, Andy. That message means a lot to me. You’ve been my favorite idol since I started to play tennis. I’ll keep grinding.” - Escobedo in reply to the show of support by Andy Roddick.

Escobedo admitted that post-match interviews and press conferences caused anxiety in him and even affected his on-court performances. The Mexican also confessed on the Behind The Racquet podcast that he took speech classes and more in an attempt to fix his stuttering, but none of the measures taken yielded any results.

“To be honest, I’ve lost big matches in the past because I just didn’t want to talk after the match,” he explained. “I just wanted to go home and just break down, that’s it.”