Born in 1981 in Edina, Minnesota, Mardy Fish would live on to have one of the most difficult tennis stories of all time. Mardy Fish is a former tennis professional in the 2000’s and 2010’s. Due to his mental health, he retired in 2015 following the U.S. Open. He battled through depression, anxiety, and weight loss, yet retired only fifteen years after joining the professional scene.
Living with Andy Roddick, Fish trained at Boca Prep International School and lived with Roddick’s family. Roddick was Fish’s best friend, and the two grew up together with similar interests and tennis capabilities. They didn’t know it at the time, but they would go on to have one of the most dynamic rivalries in professional tennis.
Fish was doing okay in the world tour, inching his way through large tournaments. However, Roddick was already a big name, winning a grand slam and defeating big names. Fish knew something had to change. In the later 2000’s, he got in touch with his nutritionist and he put Fish on a strict diet. While he wasn’t getting very full and was constantly fighting hunger, he was losing weight and fast. He lived in the gym or on the tennis courts, and that was it. By the time he was back for the next season of tennis, he was thirty pounds lighter and ready to play.
He quickly sprung to the top 100. He continued playing this same season. He continued moving up the leader board and by December, he was in the top eight players globally. He was invited to play in London for the ATP World Finals where he was set to play Roger Federer. The day they were set to play, Fish began to panic. He knew he couldn’t win. Before the match began, he spoke to the officials and withdrew from the match. It slowly got worse from here.
He had dropped significantly on the leader board, and he never recovered. He was prone to panic attacks and nightmares. He sometimes went days without leaving his bedroom. He soon had completely left tennis. He announced at the 2015 U.S. Open that it would be his final tournament. After quick elimination, he was gone. He had left tennis.
In 2023, he spoke publicly about what had happened throughout his life in a Netflix documentary titled “Untold Breaking Point”. Both he and Andy Roddick are interviewed, and they go into complete detail about growing up together, practicing, and their off court struggles. The show highlights mental illness and how it ties into sports, and Mardy was open the whole time about his experiences. While it was sad to see the American superstar leave the professional world of tennis, it’s great to see how happy he is now with his wife and kids away from the tennis courts.
