KEY BISCAYNE, Fla. (AP) -- Andy Roddick won his first Nasdaq-100 Open ATP Masters Series title Sunday when Guillermo Coria retired because of back spasms trailing in the fourth set of their best-of-five hardcourt final
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Roddick led 6-7 (2), 6-3, 6-1 when Coria quit after losing the first three points of the fourth set.
The Argentine said he hurt his back midway through the first set hitting a return. He received treatment from a trainer during a changeover trailing 6-5, then played a flawless tiebreaker to pull out the set.
But as Roddick surged ahead, Coria occasionally clutched his back between points, and his movement seemed hampered at times.
"Guillermo slowed by an injury is still faster than about 95 percent of the guys on tour,'' Roddick said. ``But it's tough playing with an injury.''
Roddick's toughest match in this tournament however was his quarterfinal date with Carlos Moya. Trailing 4-5 on the third set, he had to break the Moya serve just to stay in the match.
After hitting a forehand into the net in the first game of the final set, Coria shook his head, waved his hands in frustration and walked to the net to concede to Roddick.
``The pain was excruciating, and I was having trouble serving,'' said Coria, who lost serve five times. ``I knew after I won the first set I was not going to be able to finish.'' Coria said through a translator. "I knew I would not be able to run the way I must in order to win but I didn't want to disappoint the crowd.
Coria, who also lost to Roddick at the World Championship last year, received medical treatment after the 11th game of the first set for back pain that began after he lunged for a backhand.
But cheered on by a flag-waving and hard-cheering group of supporters he showed no sign of trouble in ripping to a 5-0 lead on his way to claiming the tie-breaker.
The final was the latest at Key Biscayne to be affected because of an ailing player.
In 1989, Thomas Muster was unable to play because he hurt his knee when hit by a car hours after winning his semifinal match. In 1994, Pete Sampras nearly defaulted because of a stomach ailment, but Andre Agassi gave his rival extra time to recover, and Sampras then won the match. And in 1996, Goran Ivanisevic woke up with a stiff neck the morning of the final and retired in the first set.
Before Coria's injury, the match had the trappings of an exciting final, with perfect weather, a capacity crowd and a Davis Cup atmosphere. Some fans waved Argentine flags, while others chanted ``U-S-A.''
``I feel very disappointed for the crowd,'' Coria said. ``I felt like I was playing in Argentina.''
Roddick hit 11 aces, the fastest of which reached 143 mph. He lost only six of 45 points on his first serve, and played steadily from the baseline, even fooling Coria twice with drop shots.
``Midway through the second set, I stepped up in all areas of my game,'' Roddick said. ``I wasn't going to beat him just rallying. I started going for my shots more.''
Roddick, who grew up in nearby Boca Raton, won the same tournament he used to watch as a youngster from the upper deck. He has won the past eight finals he has played and will climb in Monday's rankings from third to second behind No. 1 Roger Federer.
Roddick reached a milestone by improving his career record to 200-67. He leads the ATP Tour in victories this year with a record of 26-5.
The 21-year-old Roddick earned $533,350 for his first Key Biscayne title. Coria, who was seeded third, received $266,675.