Roddick Grinds Out Australian Open Win Against Gonzalez

Andy Roddick fought a war to defeat Fernando Gonzalez in the fourth round of the Australian Open Tennis tournament. Down two sets to one, Roddick won a marathon fourth set that drained his opponent just enough to let Roddick come back to win the match, 6–3, 3–6, 4–6, 7–5, 6–2.

Gonzalez was on fire in the second and third sets, hitting winner after winner. Roddick held on and played solid tennis until Gonzalez’s energy waned, and then finished the match.

“I think it was just a matter of sticking around and waiting for that moment when he let me back in a little bit, and I was able to take it,” Roddick told an ESPN reporter after the game.

Roddick will face fourteenth-seed Marin Cilic in the semi-finals. Cilic also had a grueling quarte-final match, so the pair meet on an even playing field.

Tough Conditions for a Tough Match

Despite it being Summer in Australia, it was windy and cold when seventh-seed Andy Roddick took the court against eleventh-seed Fernando Gonzalez.

Roddick came in the favorite with a 8-3 lifetime record against the Chilean, who hadn’t beaten Roddick in almost four years. On top of that, Gonzalez was coming off a tough five-set match with Feliciano Lopez.

Despite the cold temperatures the match got off to a hot start. Roddick opened with huge serves, 133 mph, while Gonzalez mixed strong play from the baseline with serve-and-volley. Not until Gonzalez double-faulted and then volleyed into the net in the sixth game did Roddick get a break.

Seemingly emboldened, Roddick came to the net in the next game, and showed his ability there. He finished with another booming serve to go up 5–2. Gonzalez won his service game, but Roddick kept his momentum and took the set 6–3.

The second set was even until the sixth game, when Gonzalez broke Roddick’s serve. This seemed to energize Gonzalez, who went on to win the set 6–3. Roddick had seven aces and only made three errors in the set, but Gonzales played harder to defend his serve when threatened.

Roddick had a chance to break in the second game of the third set but Gonzalez again fought back. Roddick seemed to be making the right plays but not executing when the pressure was on, while Gonzalez seemed to respond to the pressure.

Roddick missed a couple of easy shots in the seventh game of the set, and was clearly upset. Gonzalez had brought with him a contingent of somewhat rowdy fans from Chile, who didn’t help Roddick’s concentration.

As the match wore on, Roddick’s serve lost some pace. It seemed possible that Roddick might have inflamed an old injury in his left knee.

When asked if he had felt something in the same knee that had troubled him last season, Roddick responded, “That’s the same knee, but it’s good enough to get through matches. It’s fine.”

On top of this, Roddick grew increasingly frustrated by the noisy fans, at one point asking the chair umpire if something could be done.

In the eighth game. Gonzalez broke Roddick at love, on an unforced error from Roddick. Roddick had Gonzalez scrambling, and the Chilean was responding with desperation defensive lobs just to stay in the point.

With all the time he needed and the entire court open, Roddick drove the ball well out of play, giving Gonzalez a chance to serve for the set. Much to the noisy delight of his Chilean fans, Gonzalez served with confidence and took a two-set lead.

Pivotal Fourth Set

In the sixth game of the fourth set, Roddick got lucky with two shots that trickled over the net. This earned Roddick a pair of break points, the last of which Roddick took to deuce twice before finally hitting the ball into the net, keeping the set on serve.

By the eighth game of the fourth set, the match was just a war, a slugging match. Roddick seemed to be playing on determination, while Gonzalez was playing with great emotion, making amazing shots to stay in the match. .

In the ninth game, Roddick took Gonzalez to deuce four times on set point. Gonzalez kept digging deeper to pull of amazing shots to keep alive in the set. Finally, the two ended up face-to-face at the net, like boxers in the center of the ring, trading volleys, and Gonzalez came out ahead.

Roddick took the twelfth game to deuce, trying to prevent a tie-breaker. With so much riding on the game, Roddick hit a cross-court winner which Gonzalez let go, thinking it was going out. Roddick challenged, and the shot was ruled in, giving Roddick the game and sending the match into five sets.

Even though Roddick continued to look as though he was in pain, he kept his composure, while Gonzalez kicked some water bottles in rage.

That shot determined the match. Even though there was a set to play, Gonzalez had lost his focus. He let his fatigue and frustration take over, and even though he made some good shots in the final set, he didn’t have the extra drive.

Roddick broke Gonzalez in the second game of the fifth set. Gonzalez responded by flinging his racket to the ground, destroying it. Roddick won the next game easily. He realized that Gonzalez had spent his adrenaline, and Roddick kept his focus, played smart tennis and took the match.

Gonzalez didn’t give up. He fought hard to the final point. But plainly he was running on empty, and Andy Roddick had something left in the tank. Roddick took the match

When asked how he planned to play Marin Cilic, Roddick said, “He likes to drive through the ball and he’s very aggressive. Again, it will be about weathering the storm and trying to hold on to service games.”