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Tiebreakers become heartbreakers
One area of concern for Roddick is that while he is trying to get to the net more these days, he doesn’t quite have the right instinct to choose the correct times to come in. Sometimes he does it very well, but other times he holds back as he did at the end of the Gasquet match. This is a skill he needs to develop in order to avoid more disappointing exits from Wimbledon.
What was very impressive about Roddick at this London fortnight was up until the Gasquet match he was dominant in tiebreakers. He had won 18 straight tiebreakers and had a 24-3 record in tiebreakers this year. That all ended as he lost both tiebreakers against Gasquet. A player with a serve as huge as Roddick's should be near untouchable in tiebreakers. The American has been that, but he wasn't that at perhaps the most crucial moments of his season.
Roddick was my pick to beat Gasquet, but when he lost his magic in tiebreakers, he was doomed. It's a mystery to me and many others as to why Roddick couldn't come through in the tiebreakers against the Frenchman. Instead of stiffening and getting done what had to be done, he softened and opened the door to an eventual loss. Not a good sign at all.
Roddick doesn’t have the best record in five-setters as he’s now 9-10 when going the distance and that’s not all that impressive for such a highly ranked player. Competition on the tour is getting tougher and more intense. Against top players -- and even those approaching that status -- there is little room for error, little room for a failure to execute, especially at critical junctures in a match. Roddick found that out the hard way against Gasquet, although the seasoned pro that he is he should know it by now.
Federer could be out of reach
Wimbledon -- at which Roddick had such hope of a huge two weeks -- turned out to be a discouraging major for him. Does this mean more downers at Grand Slam events are to come for the American? His next major is the U.S. Open, and before that test rolls around Connors has to make sure the sting of Wimbledon, the sting of Gasquet, are gone for Roddick. No player can do well at a major if he enters it carrying the baggage of a previous major.
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It was Roddick’s job to make it to the Wimbledon semifinals to play top-seeded Roger Federer, and if truth be told, the guys he did beat in London -- Justin Gimelstob, Danai Udomchoke, Fernando Verdasco, and Paul-Henri Mathieu -- don’t really mean too much. Federer expected to see Roddick in the semifinals. Roddick expected to be there, but in the end he didn't live up to his part of the deal.
I wouldn't expect Roddick to have a great shot at beating Federer (he's 1-13 against the Swiss in his career) at Wimbledon in the future. And it’s hard to dismiss that there’s a lot of other players on the block like Rafael Nadal, Novak Djokovic and even Marcos Baghdatis who are quite formidable on the lawns. It’s going to be tough for Roddick to stiffly challenge Federer at any tournament.
It's not time to write Roddick off as a big-time player, but he's certainly got his work cut out for him. If the loss to Gasquet showed anything, it showed Roddick needs more from Connors, but he also in turn has to take what his coach is giving him and execute it on the court, most notably in big matches.
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