Mardy Fish does not carry an illustrious track record, but the Olympic silver medallist is a better player than his perceived stature among tennis fans and his upsurge in the recent times is truly remarkable in many ways for all those struggling and over-shadowed players, who never garner much attention. Fish is never featured in the top ten players of the world and the best he could achieve is world no. 17 in terms of ATP rankings. Many consider him as a hardcourt specialist and he belongs to the prominent league of modern American tennis players, adorned with popular names of James Blake, John Isner and Andy Roddick. Last week, Fish won his second straight tournament and 10th straight match in singles, when he defeated his compatriot John Isner with a 4-6 6-4 7-6 (7-4) scoreline, in the final of the Atlanta Tennis Championships. Obviously, these are good signs that Fish can claim that coveted place amidst the company of Roddick and Isner who are expected to bring back the glorious days of American tennis. 

Though Fish turned pro in 2000, his career got a real start in 2003, when he went on to win his first ATP singles title and surprised many by winning the tough final in Cincinnati. That performance was an eye-opener for many and Fish continued to yield good results to add more to the growing fervour and his popularity among tennis fans. In the same year, Fish also defeated the Swedish no. 1 Robin Soderling and claimed the Stockholm Open title. In fact, Fish also defeated the former world no. 1 Carlos Moya at the 2003 Australian Open and finished the year at no. 20 in ranking.

These achievements were remarkable in every sense, but Fish could not really grab all the headlines because his performances were always compared with the past greats. In 2004, Fish reached the finals in San Jose and later in the year, he earned a silver medal for his country at the Summer Olympics. On his way to reach there, Fish also defeated the big players including Fernando Gonzalez and Juan Carlos Ferrero. During those times, Fish was peaking up nicely on a consistent basis, but he injured his left wrist in 2005 and could only play in 17 matches – throughout the year. After his recovery, Fish once again hit the headlines by winning the US Men’s Claycourt Championships and defeated many big players including eighth seed Juan Monaco, Vince Spadea and Jurgen Melzer. 

In 2007, Fish reached the fourth round of the Australian Open, but could not achieve something significant. Once again, he was ignored by the media, but the American did not blurt out his anger or looked perturbed during those tough times and fully concentrated on his game. Fish also reached the quarterfinal of the 2008 U.S. Open, but he could not defeat the mighty Nadal in that match and lost it with a 6-3 1-6 4-6 2-6 scoreline. The year 2009 brought a mixed bag of results for the American, as he did relatively well in doubles with altering partners, but could not achieve something substantial in singles. His recent success in singles is not a fluke but a result of sheer determination and hardwork – we hope that the American would bring more astounding results on the forefront in the near future.