Andy Roddick: What's Next for Him After Retiring to Lleyton Hewitt?

Andy Roddick was forced to retire with a right hamstring injury while trailing Lleyton Hewitt (3-6, 6-3, 6-4), ending his run—at least for now—at a second Grand Slam title and first Australian Open.

The American's recent health problems beg the question: What's next?

Roddick was hampered by shoulder and abdominal injuries throughout 2011. 

Some of his power seemed lost, and he finished outside the top 10 year-end rankings for the first time in more than a decade.

His recent struggles have people questioning whether he can ever regain his form, including perhaps, himself.

From the Australian Open:

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"It's frustrating," the 29-year-old said.  "It's discouraging.  You know, your sensible mind says to have a sense of perspective.  You still have it pretty good.  The competitor in you feels terrible and wants to break stuff." 

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No doubt Roddick's recent bout of injuries is cause for concern. 

He isn't an exuberant youth anymore, and as he approaches the dreaded age of 30, the window of opportunity for him to remain among the world's best is closing.

Don't count him out just yet, though. 

If Roddick is to take away anything positive from his recent injury, it should be that it isn't his shoulder. 

He experienced a similar injury while training in December and believes he hyper-extended it this time around.  As far as potential injuries go, there are much worse.

Is this to say that Roddick's hamstring is of no concern?  Of course not, but moving forward, he needs to prepare himself both mentally and physically for the next Grand Slam tournament.

The 2012 French Open will be upon us in the blink of an eye, and as Roddick showed against Hewitt, he can still hang tough, even while injured.

Because of this, we must reserve all speculation and judgment regarding how much gas is left in the tank until we see him there.

So what is next for the struggling Roddick?  Preparation and rehabilitation.

His career isn't over, and to say that he will never be able to win another Grand Slam title is premature. 

Athletes age far from gracefully, but as Roddick just showed us, he'll explore every possible option before quitting.

In return, we cannot quit on him, either.  Not just yet, anyway.

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