"Need Roger Federer to start putting Andy Roddick in his place again" - Fans slam American's 'pathetic' take on Reilly Opelka's doubles criticism

Andy Roddick supported Reilly Opelka's criticism of doubles when the former World No. 17 American had claimed that the format is for "failed singles players." However, his endorsement of Opelka has triggered a heated debate in the tennis community on social media.

Opelka caught devout tennis fans' ire when he pushed for men's doubles to be completely phased out of the ATP Tour. The 6-foot-11 American also questioned the viewership base of doubles before going as far as to accuse its specialists of "greedy behavior."

Not only did Andy Roddick not condemn Reilly Opelka's disparaging comments on his Served with Andy Roddick podcast on Monday (February 24), but he also suggested that the 27-year-old was an interesting character despite their different opinions on various topics.

"Listen, Reilly Opelka, love him or hate him, you rarely have to wonder what he's thinking and he's certainly not scared to tell you what he's thinking," Andy Roddick said on his podcast earlier this week. "So, regardless of if you agree with the opinion, I kind of like characters like Reilly, who will just say what they're thinking."

The tennis community didn't see eye to eye with the 2003 US Open champion, judging by their reaction on Reddit. One fan even asserted that Roger Federer should make a comeback just to beat the American on a tennis court again (the Swiss maestro leads their head-to-head by a huge margin of 21-3).

"It's pretty pathetic to watch a guy like Roddick punch down... Need Federer to come out and start putting Roddick in his place again," the user wrote on Reddit.

Comment byu/Fit-Humor-5022 from discussion intennis

Another fan, meanwhile, alluded to the 42-year-old's previous comments on Wimbledon men's doubles champions Harri Heliovaara and Henry Patten, as a way to illustrate the American legend's apparent contempt towards doubles.

"This is not a new stance for Roddick. He criticized doubles after Wimbledon last year when Heliövaara and Patten won," the user wrote.

Comment byu/Fit-Humor-5022 from discussion intennis

Here are a few more reactions from the tennis community on Reddit:

"After hearing Served and Nothing major talk about the US Open mixed doubles, I think it's very obvious how much the USTA have rallied their troops to provide a very enthusiastic response to the change in doubles format... Super insincere," one fan claimed.

"It's very American of them to just look at the bottom line and 'How much does X make in profit'," another lamented.

"Andy Roddick started hanging out with business guys and now he thinks he’s a business guy," one fan joked.

"It’s American men thing to hate double… Roddick, Paul, Opelka, Fritz," another insisted.

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Andy Roddick was unsuccessful in his doubles turn at Pickleball Slam 3 against Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf

Andy Roddick and Eugenie Bouchard joined forces for doubles at Pickleball Slam 3 | Image Source: Getty

Andy Roddick himself took to the doubles format earlier this month, albeit in a different sport. The American teamed up with Canadian tennis star Eugenie Bouchard to take on the legendary husband-wife duo of Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf at Pickleball Slam 3 at the Michelob ULTRA Arena at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, Las Vegas, Nevada.

Although Roddick and Bouchard were able to beat Agassi and Graf in their doubles fixture, they were bested 11-8 in the tiebreaker round by the three-time Pickleball Slam champions.

With their triumph, the eight-time Major winner and the 23-time Major winner took home a purse of $1 million.