The chronicles of Roddick: one of the best American tennis players ever to hold court, Andy Roddick keeps coming up aces

Andy Roddick, 21, is the youngest American ever to be ranked No. 1 by the Association of Tennis Professionals. The primary weapon in is arsenal? The most devastating serve in the sport, a rocket that has been clocked at 153 mph. He steamrolled the competition en route to victory in last year's men's U.S. Open, an event he hopes to win again this month. He'll also represent the USA at the Olympics in Greece this summer for the first time. Off court, Roddick has been something of a sensation as well, appearing in the gossip pages (he dated pop princess Mandy Moore and is now canoodling with fashion model Lauren Bedford) and even wading into entertainment waters (last year he hosted an episode of Saturday Night Live). The Floridian shares his secrets of competition, motivation, and concentration--without smashing any racquets.

TAKE A CHANCE

When I was 17, I knew I was good enough to get a full tennis scholarship to the college I wanted to go to, so pro tennis never really entered my mind. Then I won a junior grand slam, and it came time to choose between going to college or going pro. I didn't want to look back and wonder what might have been. People ask me what I would have studied in college, and I really have no idea [laughs]. So I'm kind of lucky this worked out.

ROLL WITH IT

It was pretty inconceivable for me to think that, out of every American who has ever been ranked No. 1--Agassi, Sampras, McEnroe, Connors, Courier, etc.--I was the youngest to get there. It was very surreal for me, but I try not to get too caught up with it. I think it's just a trip.

MASTER YOUR DESTINY

I often get asked, "What advice would you give junior tennis players?" I say, "You're the only one that can control how hard you work on a daily basis" Now, if I would have read this response from someone else, I'd feel like going, "Oh yeah, whatever." But it actually makes sense and, as cheesy and stupid as it sounds, it's true. You can't control the weather, you can't control what your opponent is doing, you can't control a lot of things, but you can control what you put into it. If I am in the fourth hour of a match and I am confident that I put in more work than my opponent, then I know I've got a mental edge. My favorite quote is from the golfer Gary Player, who said, "The harder you work, the luckier you get."

DEAL WITH IT

There are some guys who are negative all the time, and others who are in denial about how good they are. Some guys that get in a rut can't do anything right and convince themselves they can't play. It's like, "Dude, if you keep telling yourself that, then it's going to keep ringing true." Everyone gets into a rut--it's inevitable. It's the way you deal with it that makes a difference. I start working harder. When I am playing well and everything is going well, I don't feel the need to practice two hours a day. But if things aren't going my way, then I try to get back to the drawing board as soon as possible. I try to fight back. It's tough sometimes, but you have to give it a go.

TRY DIFFERENT THINGS

Hosting SNL was nerve-wracking, exciting, and awesome! It was weird because I felt completely vulnerable. If I play a bad tennis match, I know I'm still better than most people watching, but on SNL that was definitely not the case. But I am not actively pursuing an acting career--that's not what I do.

IMPROVISE

Before a match, you have to set a strategy of what you want to do. But if your opponent is having an off day in one part of the game, then you might have to adjust in the middle. And if you're doing something and it's not working, then stop going to it.

USE YOUR FEAR

People try to portray me as this world-beating, overconfident guy, but no matter who it is I play, I am always seared going into a match. The more nervous I am about who I am playing, the better I play. When I am overconfident, that's when I normally go down. I think the fear just makes me zone in a little more.

CHANGE WHAT DOESN'T WORK

Giving up is one thing I really don't have in me. If I am playing terribly, I might think that I am going to lose, but that's totally different than giving up. I might be like, "Dude, this just isn't my day, but at least try to throw the kitchen sink at 'em." So I try to simplify things, even if it means, "OK, I'm going to put every ball in the court, even if I am not hitting great shots with pace or anything" I just try and make the guy hit more balls. I start playing different little games like that to get back into it.

CONTROL FRUSTRATION

In 2002 I broke 39 racquets. It's pure frustration because I still can't get a particular thing right, even though I have been playing the game my whole life. I can be having a great practice and then something goes wrong and then there goes that racquet, but then the rest of the practice will be fine. So it's not like I am fuming or anything. My racquet company is not happy when I do that--sorry, guys [laughs]!