Sam Querrey quietly retired

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He announced his retirement on August 30 and played his last matches in singles at the US Open where he lost in the first round to Ilya Ivashka and in doubles with good friend Steve Johnson where they lost in the first round to Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski.

He is 34 years old and his ranking completely dropped like a rock this season, his career high was 11th attained in February of 2018 after having a solid 2017 defeating defending 2016 Wimbledon Champion Andy Murray in the Quarter Finals. Querrey turned pro in 2006, so that's a 16 year career.

He never was really in the limelight, just quietly going along his business, no controversy, nobody said a bad thing about him on tour so I have heard but he had a mean serve and when his forehand was on it was a rocket ship. Looking at the retirement list for this season there is a swath of players born in the mid to late 1980s who are calling it a day.

Sam Querrey knows it's time. The 34-year-old stalwart of American tennis is ready for one last ride: the 2022 US Open is his last tournament before retirement.

"Earlier this year, let's call it like April, May, I started thinking about it a little bit and then really didn't make the decision until earlier this summer that I was going to stop here," Querrey told USOpen.org on Sunday on the eve of the US Open.

"This is going to be the last one. And now we're here. I've got one more left."

Choosing when to retire isn't a decision that a tennis player takes lightly, nor is it one that's easy. But for Querrey, it's one that's been freeing. He says he's looking forward to spending more time with his wife, Abby, and two young sons: toddler Ford and Owen, 9 months.

"Since I made the decision probably five or six weeks ago, I've been in a great state of mind," he said. "Going out to practice has been fun. I've been relaxed. I haven't been stressed about it or anything. It's actually been pretty enjoyable the last month and exciting, looking forward to this tournament. I've got my wife here, my kids are here, and some friends and family. It's a fun group of people that have come out to watch.

"It's not easy to travel with little ones, but they are here. ... The two-and-a-half year-old can watch a match each day for maybe 30 minutes, which is pretty fun. Even outside of the matches, it's fun. When they come to the practice, they walk around the court and they'll pick up a racquet. It's just fun to be out here as a family."
Link to article.
 
He was a hell of a player in his day. One of the best of the era to watch on grass, for sure. I know he was never a high-flying name in the sport and his career was long in decline, but it was still sort of sad to me that he got stuck on an outside court and his last (singles) match finished with nothing more than a few fans chanting his name.
 
Really underrated but no controversy? Dude got COVID in Moscow and was ordered to stay there for 2 weeks, instead he booked it out of the country with his wife and kids on a private plane and went AWOL till it all went away. I’m pretty sure he’s on some kind of Russian wanted list right now.
 
Really underrated but no controversy? Dude got COVID in Moscow and was ordered to stay there for 2 weeks, instead he booked it out of the country with his wife and kids on a private plane and went AWOL till it all went away. I’m pretty sure he’s on some kind of Russian wanted list right now.
He did have a controverse
In 2020 after testing positive in Russia he made a run for it on a private plane to the states breaching his isolation
Next time Sammy travels to Soviet Mother Russia...
3gg3ge.jpg
 
Sad day. Not a lot of press because he got overshadowed by Serena. Then again, literally anyone would be overshadowed by Serena's final tournament - especially at the US Open.

As for Querrey, he's immortalized in tennis history as the man who stopped Djokovic from winning 5 in a row. He'll always have that magical Wimbledon, even if he didn't end up taking the slam, he remains the only player since 1970 to face a player that held 4 slams and win.
 
He wasn't a big enough player to get a lot of press realistically, regardless of who else was retiring. Maybe five years ago when he was somewhat of a threat, but he's been basically invisible for years now.

I feel like he underachieved a bit, with that serve and his early breakout run.
 
I don't get why so many of you people are getting your knickers in a twist about this.

I hope for the best, but fear the worst...
 
I wish Sam got at least 5% the attention the woman retiring yesterday had. He really deserved better. He's a nice person.
 
Really underrated but no controversy? Dude got COVID in Moscow and was ordered to stay there for 2 weeks, instead he booked it out of the country with his wife and kids on a private plane and went AWOL till it all went away. I’m pretty sure he’s on some kind of Russian wanted list right now.

I stand corrected, I didn't know this, stupid error on his part.
 
I read the story of him dipping from Russia in an interview somewhere and it makes him look much less unreasonable than the the accounts here.
 
He announced his retirement on August 30 and played his last matches in singles at the US Open where he lost in the first round to Ilya Ivashka and in doubles with good friend Steve Johnson where they lost in the first round to Wesley Koolhof and Neal Skupski.

He is 34 years old and his ranking completely dropped like a rock this season, his career high was 11th attained in February of 2018 after having a solid 2017 defeating defending 2016 Wimbledon Champion Andy Murray in the Quarter Finals. Querrey turned pro in 2006, so that's a 16 year career.

He never was really in the limelight, just quietly going along his business, no controversy, nobody said a bad thing about him on tour so I have heard but he had a mean serve and when his forehand was on it was a rocket ship. Looking at the retirement list for this season there is a swath of players born in the mid to late 1980s who are calling it a day.

Sam Querrey knows it's time. The 34-year-old stalwart of American tennis is ready for one last ride: the 2022 US Open is his last tournament before retirement.

"Earlier this year, let's call it like April, May, I started thinking about it a little bit and then really didn't make the decision until earlier this summer that I was going to stop here," Querrey told USOpen.org on Sunday on the eve of the US Open.

"This is going to be the last one. And now we're here. I've got one more left."

Choosing when to retire isn't a decision that a tennis player takes lightly, nor is it one that's easy. But for Querrey, it's one that's been freeing. He says he's looking forward to spending more time with his wife, Abby, and two young sons: toddler Ford and Owen, 9 months.

"Since I made the decision probably five or six weeks ago, I've been in a great state of mind," he said. "Going out to practice has been fun. I've been relaxed. I haven't been stressed about it or anything. It's actually been pretty enjoyable the last month and exciting, looking forward to this tournament. I've got my wife here, my kids are here, and some friends and family. It's a fun group of people that have come out to watch.

"It's not easy to travel with little ones, but they are here. ... The two-and-a-half year-old can watch a match each day for maybe 30 minutes, which is pretty fun. Even outside of the matches, it's fun. When they come to the practice, they walk around the court and they'll pick up a racquet. It's just fun to be out here as a family."
Link to article.
Thought he was closer to 40...
Best wishes, Sam. From what I saw of him through the years, he seemed like a true gent.
 
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