James Blake To Retire After US Open

American veteran James Blake announced today that he will retire from tennis after this US Open. The 33-year-old who grew up near the US Open in Yonkers made the surprise news at a morning press conference Monday at the tournament.

“I have had 14 pretty darn good years on tour, loved every minute of it, and I definitely couldn’t have asked for a better career,” a teary-eyed Blake. “For me to think of matches I should have won and to make those as regrets for me has always just seemed greedy. I did the best I could in every situation.”

“I’m really, really excited I have gotten to do this on my terms” he added. “As far as my decision, I’d say it was becoming clearer and clearer throughout most of this year. Little things throughout the year made it more clear and more obvious that this was the right time for me. I always wanted to end my career at the US Open.”

A former Harvard student, Blake will leave the tour with 10 career ATP titles, three Grand Slam quarterfinal appearances and a career-high No. 4 ranking.

Blake recently married Emily Snider and the couple welcomed their first child, daughter Riley, last summer.

“I just want to be around family for a while and kind of see what happens,” Blake said. “I don’t have any specific plans. I’d like to see if there is something outside of tennis to do. Something still inside tennis way down the road I would obviously love to be back in tennis as the Davis Cup captain.”

Blake, who’s been plagued by knee issues the last few years, will play Ivo Karlovic in a first round match yet to be scheduled.