Now That Thanksgiving is Over, a Mild Complaint

It has been a bit of an anti-climactic week thus far at the ATP World Tour Finals in London. Through eight round-robin matches, we have seen only one go the three-set distance- an entertaining see-saw clash between Nadal and Roddick which mirrored their encounter in Miami earlier this season. Every other match has ended in straight sets with relatively little drama. An event which boasts a draw consisting entirely of the world's top eight singles players brings with it the promise of many a close, bitterly-contested nail-biter, as we saw at this event last season.

With but the one notable exception, match after marquee match has proven a competitive letdown this week, even when local hero Andy Murray took to the court against Federer, or Djokovic against Nadal. There have also been relatively few surprising outcomes; Federer's bludgeoning of Murray and Roddick's collapse at the hands of Tomas Berdych are the only two that really come to mind.

On that note, the event has been an even bigger letdown from the perspective of a supporter of Mr. Roddick, who has continued to display his recent propensity for losing sets and matches from clearly winning positions. Against Berdych- an opponent who had not been playing at anything close to a top 10 level since Wimbledon- Roddick was clearly the better man through the first 10 games of the opening set, and held two set points at 5-4, each of which saw him returning standard second serves. Each time, Roddick responded with a soft, short slice return, simply hoping for a Berdych error, and in so doing, he not only enabled his foe to save both set points, but also awakened the sleeping giant that was a confident Berdych, with disastrous results.

Nevertheless, all is not lost even for Roddick just yet, as the identity of the second member of Group B (Nadal, Djokovic, Berdych and Roddick) to proceed to the semifinals (wherein Group A winners Federer and Murray await) remains as yet undetermined. The first criterion for semifinal berth is, of course, a player's round-robin win-loss record, but in the event that Nadal, who is 2-0 thus far in the event, should defeat Berdych and Roddick beat Djokovic today, then all three men will be 1-2, and the selection process will have to make recourse to total sets or even games in order to choose from the three. As I write this, Nadal is on the brink of a straight-sets victory. Going into the final round-robin match-up of this event, Roddick holds an impressive 5-2 head-to-head record against Djokovic and has won their last four meetings, though it does seem that Djokovic's form has improved of late, and that Roddick is low on confidence, as evidenced by his repeated losses from ahead, including one to Berdych, against whom he had previously held a dominant 6-2 record. I will be in his corner, and expect an entertaining match to punctuate the round-robin swing.

Federer, Soderling and Semifinals in France

Before delving into more pressing matters, I would like to point out an odd little observation I've made:

Last week in Paris, the two semifinals (Soderling vs. Llodra and Federer vs. Monfils) were veritably remarkable, not only for their tremendous drama and entertainment value, but for their congruency- each match ended most unusually, with one man saving several match points while serving at 5-6, then roaring back to claim victory in a decisive tiebreak. Seeing this most unusual phenomenon take place and reflecting on it in its aftermath, I was reminded of an eerily similar occurrence which transpired at last year's French Open, when Federer and Soderling, competing on the same national soil, also participated in back-to-back epic semifinals which were distinguished by their uncanny similarity to one another; first Federer squeaked past Juan Martin Del Potro 6-4 in their fifth set, then Soderling rallied to overcome Fernando Gonzalez by precisely the same finishing score- 6-4 in the fifth- in a match with the same net duration time, to the minute.

This compels me to wonder: do Roger and Robin have some kind of bizarre pact to faithfully imitate one another's semifinal showings on French soil, are they psychically linked, or- to close out this little post with a nauseatingly cheesy pun- is it just something in the cheese?

On Goes the Ballad of Federer and Roddick

It will be an eminently familiar sight tomorrow in Basel when Roger Federer and Andy Roddick take to opposite sides of the tennis court to duel for a spot in the tournament final. Their "rivalry" has been on a bit of a hiatus, what with their not having met in a competitive match since last year's legendary Wimbledon epic, but there will surely be nothing foreign to either man about what awaits him across the net. The stakes will not be nearly so high as those underlying many of their previous clashes, and yet they are still hefty enough to bring out the competitive fire in most any player- for Federer, a chance to reclaim the title he lost last year on his beloved home turf, and for Roddick, the possibility of an eighth consecutive qualification for the year-end championships.

In searching for an apt analogy to the dynamics of the Federer-Roddick series in other media, I fear one might all too often find his or her thoughts straying towards the "Texas Chainsaw Massacre" films. In 21 professional encounters between these two, Roddick has emerged victorious but twice, and those only narrowly, while Federer has blown through over half of their meetings in straight sets. However, it may be pointed out that things have been somewhat different in the last few additions to this ledger; Roddick has taken at least a set off Federer in four of their last five meetings, including a win (2008 Miami) and, most recently, a near-stunner in a Grand Slam final (2009 Wimbledon).

I have not seen much of Federer's play thus far in Basel, though his results indicate that he is by no means at his worst. His strokes look clean and confident in the portions of his match with Radek Stepanek which I have viewed. However, he has been thoroughly erratic in recent months, and clean rallying against a lower-tier opponent has not always translated into the same in his big matches.

Roddick's form this week been surprisingly strong, given the illness-and-injury problems which have plagued him over the last several months. He has defeated two dangerous opponents in Sam Querrey and David Nalbandian, has not dropped a set and has only lost serve once en route to the semifinals, and has projected an air of confidence and assertiveness on the court that was missing all through this summer.

I believe that, if he brings the same level of play to the court against Federer as he did today in defeating Nalbandian, Roddick should give Federer trouble and will have a "live" shot at pulling the upset. To me, it will feel like justice if he does just that.

Race to the World Tour Championships

2010's Grand Slam action now complete, the ATP World Tour has entered its final phase, as the world's best compete in the overseas indoor hard-court season, which will culminate in London at the year-end championships next month. Only the top eight ranking-point-earners of the 2010 season will qualify to compete in the event, which will follow a unique round-robin format. Four of these eight spots have already been secured, going to Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Andy Murray respectively. Robin Soderling looks poised to claim the fifth place, while Tomas Berdych, David Ferrer, and Andy Roddick are the leading candidates for the last three, with Spain's Fernando Verdasco close behind.

This week has seen the progression of the Shanghai Masters event, where Roger Federer and Andy Murray will meet in the final tomorrow. Shanghai was the site of the year-end championships from 2002 through 2008, before the event was moved to London last year, and the Shanghai venue opened this event as a replacement. Significant developments have included Rafael Nadal's shocking upset defeat at the hands of Austrian Jurgen Melzer and Andy Roddick's latest injury woes, which forced him to retire from a match he had been dominating against Guillermo Garcia-Lopez of Spain. One will scarcely be able to blame Roddick should he steer clear of Shanghai next season, as this marks the third consecutive season he has left the venue with a debilitating injury a severely-sprained ankle saw him withdraw during the 2008 year-end championships, a hyper-extended knee ejected him from last year's event, and this year, a thigh injury had the same effect, jeopardizing Roddick's place in London.

Federer and Murray have both shown strong form at this event, neither man dropping a set en route to the finals. Although Murray holds a 7-5 career head-to-head advantage over Federer, I am inclined to favor Federer to win the championship in what will likely be a three-set encounter.

US Open Final: Nadal vs. Djokovic

The second name in that title would come as a shock to you, were it not for the fact that anyone liable to be reading this already knows about the outcome of yesterday's second US Open semifinal. With his gripping upset of Roger Federer yesterday afternoon, Novak Djokovic has completed a truly inspiring run to his second final in New York: lucky to escape the first round after trailing two sets to one and a break against compatriot Viktor Troicki, Djokovic saw a swift reversal in form carry him through to the semis, where he found himself faced with the one obstacle he had found himself unable to overcome since his rise to prominence at the Open. By virtue of an uncommon display of nerve and poise under pressure- even in the face of two match points against him- along with strangely erratic play from Federer's end, Djokovic was able to spoil the much anticipated Federer-Nadal Sunday showdown and claim a place in his own first Grand Slam final appearance in over two-and-a-half years.

Standing in his way is world's #1 Rafael Nadal, whose dominance at this event thus far has been truly imposing. Nadal has secured his berth into the final without the loss of a single set, and has only lost serve twice through six rounds of action. "Invincible" does not seem a terribly hyperbolic adjective if one is looking to describe the way Nadal has often looked of late.

That said, if I may engage in a bit of devilish advocacy, it seems to me that Nadal has benefited from a favorable draw to this point in the event, in that he has not had to face a top-tier opponent to reach the final, and has gone through a line-up of foes against whom he had fairly dominant head-to-head histories. Moreover, Djokovic does hold a 7-3 historical head-to-head advantage over Nadal on hard-courts, including the last three. Nevertheless, Nadal is in far better form than he was when last they met, should be the fresher of the two for the final and has generally come through better than Djokovic has on the biggest stages throughout their careers thus far.

I forecast a Nadal victory in four close sets.

Back from hiatus...

Hello, prospective readers,
Before launching into discussion of current events, I will launder out a brief list of excuses for my recent substantial absence from posting on this blog:
1. The outcome of the Cincinnati semifinals was crushing enough (both of my rooting interests falling, with Roddick losing from a set-and-break up after serving for the match) that I felt more inclined to sulk than to write further updates on the tournament at the time.
2. The start of my fall schooling shortly thereafter, along with a job interview with the Lewiston Tribune, served to divert my attention such that I continually failed to get another good update together.
3. Further disappointment, with both Baghdatis and Roddick falling in the first two rounds of the US Open, left me once more inclined to sulk rather than write.

However, more exciting developments have roused me from my proverbial slumber, as the US Open semifinals prepare to commence. Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal have each put forward a tremendous showing thus far in the event, neither man dropping a set and both compiling highlight reels worthy of many a player's full season. A Nadal-Federer US Open final, the historical significance of which would be mind-blowing, now appears probable, though both men have sturdy hurdles to overcome today, in the form of Mikhail Youzhny and Novak Djokovic respectively.

I will admit that I have, for most of this US hard-court swing, been a skeptic of the media narrative which cast Nadal as favorite for the Open, given his relatively unimpressive record therein and less-than-astonishing showings in the lead-up events, but Nadal has changed the equation this year in dramatic fashion through a serving display of the kind few would have thought him capable. Prior to this tournament, I do not believe I had ever seen Nadal's serve break 130 miles per hour on a speed gun; this US Open, he has regularly exceeded that benchmark, topping out at around 135. Of all the strokes in Nadal's repertoire, the serve has historically been his least impressive, perhaps the only one which was subpar for an elite-level player. Now, it appears, that one chink in his armor has been erased. Nadal is faced with a historically difficult foe in Youzhny, who has beaten him four times in their eleven previous meetings, including once at this tournament, and holds a 4-3 edge on hard-courts, but I feel confident nevertheless in predicting a Nadal victory in three or four sets.

Meanwhile, Roger Federer's run to this year's US Open semifinals has hearkened back to his peak heyday moreso than any he has put together in quite some time. He has played clean, confident and assertive tennis set-in and set-out through four consecutive matches to reach the semifinals of a Slam without dropping a set for the first time since Wimbledon 2008. He faces a familiar foe in Djokovic, who he has defeated in the finals or semifinals of the last three US Opens. Djokovic was extremely lucky this year to escape defeat in the opening round, rallying from a deficit of two sets to one and a break in the fourth against compatriot Viktor Troicki, but he has since found his own form and confidence and has looked very impressive in his last two matches, dispatching Mardy Fish and Gael Monfils in one-sided three-set affairs. Of the two semifinal underdogs, I would give Djokovic a stronger chance at upsetting the applecart that is the anticipated Federer-Nadal Sunday clash, but this, too, must be seen as doubtful.

Upsets, Resurgences and Semifinal Previews in Cincinnati

Before going into the title-relevant portion of this post, I will make a brief digression to note the ultimate prescience of the "dubious" prediction about last week's Federer-Djokovic referenced in the previous entry, which wound up panning out exactly along the lines I had suggested; I needed only have more faith in the face of the ugly start Djokovic had made at the time of publishing. Anyway, on to more pertinent matters.

In contrast to the neatly-unfolding draw seen last week in Canada (all four top seeds reaching the semifinals for the first time in decades), the Cincinnati event has been a thoroughly unpredictable and turbulent affair thus far. Notably, three of the top four were derailed in the quarterfinals today: a shaky Rafael Nadal fell this evening in a nail-biter against Marcos Baghdatis, the resurgent Cypriot who has been a major player in the US Open Series and had already downed Marin Cilic and Tomas Berdych earlier in the draw, Novak Djokovic suffered his fourth consecutive defeat to Andy Roddick, who, with back-to-back wins over top five opponents within a 24-hour span, has reestablished himself as a top 10 player and factor in the upper echelon of the men's game, and Andy Murray was edged by Mardy Fish, who continues to ride a streak of career-best form which has propelled his ranking from just inside the top 100 to within the top 25 over the course of two-and-a-half months. Only Roger Federer held to seeding, taking out Nikolay Davydenko 6-4, 7-5.

This leaves us with a pair of fascinating semifinal encounters: an all-American clash between Roddick and Fish alongside a rematch of the 2006 Australian Open final between Federer and Baghdatis. Not only are both of these match-ups juicy in their own right, but any of the possible pairings for the final will yield considerable dramatic possibilities as well. So, to offer my thoughts:

Roddick-Fish
Historically, Fish has been a veritable stool pigeon for his good friend and compatriot. Roddick holds a 9-2 career head-to-head advantage, including a win in the final of this very event back in 2003. This, however, is an instance in which I lend less weight than usual to head-to-head history, as Fish is in the midst of an aforementioned career-peak run of play, while Roddick is just coming out of a partially illness-induced down period, which included a loss to the red-hot Fish last month in Atlanta- their last, and perhaps most relevant, meeting. Given Roddick's newfound momentum in the aftermath of back-to-back top five victories, Fish's historical tendency to come up just short in the biggest matches, and the aforementioned head-to-head, I do believe Roddick is properly considered the favorite for tomorrow, but would not encourage anyone to put money down on this match, which I expect to be close and hotly-contested.

Federer-Baghdatis
Here, I must first divulge that Marcos Baghdatis has long had a place among my premier rooting interests on the ATP tour, and that, though I feel no personal dislike and have great respect for Federer, I find no compelling reason to root for a man who has already accomplished more than one could ever reasonably hope for in a tennis career, and am unspeakably tired of watching him crush the hopes and dreams of my personal favorites. Accordingly, I am far from impartial in analyzing this match-up, and admit that it could be wishful thinking which casts it in my mind as competitive. Nevertheless, I will say that I view this encounter, which sees Baghdatis entering on perhaps his best run of play in over four years against a Federer who has struggled all year since the Australian Open, as a virtual toss-up, though I will once again err on the side of history and big-match experience in saying that Federer is deservedly the favorite.

Murray Edges Nadal; Federer Starts Strong

My previously-expressed doubts about Nadal's status as favorite for the Canadian Rogers Masters event proved valid as he was dismissed by a very sharp Andy Murray, 6-3, 6-4, in their semifinal encounter earlier today. The match was closer than the scoreline might lead one to believe, hinging a couple of crucial points in each set, and the outcome may well have been drastically altered by a single errant line call which saved Murray from going down a break midway through the first, but it was nonetheless a comprehensively impressive showing and an uplifting victory for the Scot- good news for his fans, who have had relatively little cause for cheer in recent months. It is hard to imagine Murray not offering at the least a major fight for either Federer or Djokovic in tomorrow's final.

On that note, I had intended to forecast a tough three-set win for Federer in today's second semifinal, but this idea appears highly dubious, to say the least, after seeing the first set, in which Federer blitzed an out-of-sorts Djokovic 6-1 in less a half-hour. As I write this, Djokovic continues to spray errors against a very aggressive Federer and is already down a break in the second set...

Rogers Masters First Big US Open Lead-up Event

Hello, any readers,
Apologies for the nine-day silence, attributable in part to my having set out on vacation Saturday morning to a place with no internet access (I write to you now from a public library in Manzanita, Oregon). In the meantime, the Legg Mason Classic proved a tournament of upsets, well-represented in its surprise final between darkhorses David Nalbandian and Marcos Baghdatis. Tomas Berdych failed to impress, and the likes of Andy Roddick and Marin Cilic continued recent runs of dismal form. All-in-all, no clear frontrunner for the US Open Series and the Open itself has emerged as of yet.

That situation is likely to change this week, however, as we enter our first ATP Masters event of the summer in Canada. These next few days will see the full roll-call of top players reemerge at the same tournament for the first time since Wimbledon and offer the first major preview for the US Open, to be followed later by the Cincinnati Masters and then the Open itself. World's number one Rafael Nadal enters as top seed, though I would hesitate to name him a clear favorite to win the title in light of his relatively unimpressive hardcourt results thus far in 2010, while Roger Federer will be playing his first tournament seeded outside the top two in around seven years.

Early headlines have focused on the novel appearance of a Nadal/Djokovic doubles team, which will be the first such pairing of the world's first and second ranked singles players in over 20 years. The singles draw contains an exciting second-round clash between Robin Soderling and Ernests Gulbis, which is in progress as I write, a chance for Andy Roddick to avenge his latest Wimbledon heartbreaker when he faces Yen-Tsun Lu in his opener, and the potentially electrifying possibility of a Federer-Berdych Wimbledon rematch in the quarterfinals.

I'm off to follow the action now, but hope I can get back to you in the next couple days.
Stay well,
Cody Wendt.

LA Final

In spite of the rather bumpy road each man has had to navigate along the way, our top two seeds, world's number four Andy Murray and rising young American Sam Querrey, are set to square off in the Los Angeles final today. Querrey has looked less than convincing, to say the least, reaching the final through back-to-back nail-biting comeback victories over Arnaud Clement and Janko Tipsarevic, while Murray has been wildly erratic, alternating between patches of awe-inspiring play and lackadaisical ball-spraying. Nevertheless, I am optimistic that both men will summon up their utmost effort to deliver an engaging final this afternoon.

Murray is considerably higher ranked, has a far more impressive collection of victories under his belt, and has soundly defeated Querrey in all four of their previous career encounters, including one scarcely a month ago at Wimbledon. However, it may be pointed out that Murray's results this season outside the Grand Slam events have been positively abysmal by his standards, while Querrey has had tremendous success therein, accumulating three year-to-date titles. Moreover, this match will be played not only in Querrey's home country, but in his home state, where the crowd support he receives is tremendous (as exemplified by the "Samurai" pictured above), and he will enter the match as defending champion.

All things considered, then, I must give Querrey a legitimate chance at pulling the upset, but will lean towards a Murray victory in three sets.

Atlanta Wrap-up, LA Ramp-up, and Early Thoughts on the US Open

Mardy Fish completed his first career run of back-to-back ATP Tour-level titles Sunday in Atlanta, upsetting top seed Andy Roddick in the semifinals to set up a dramatic 4-6, 6-4, 7-6 title-clinching victory over towering marathon man John Isner. Fish has revitalized his game in recent months, slimming down substantially and performing with renewed belief and self-confidence. Meanwhile, American number one Roddick remains entrenched in the patch of subpar form which has persisted since his return from a two-month post-Miami hiatus; in particular, Roddick's return game has been in the gutter these last couple months, something nowhere better illustrated than in this last defeat, wherein Fish posted a paltry 40% of first serves in, yet Roddick was unable to capitalize with even a single service break. Isner was none too convincing either, narrowly escaping a potential early exit to Gilles Muller and then struggling mightily to edge out Kevin Anderson in the semifinals.

Nevertheless, I remain doubtful of Fish's status as a serious contender at the fourth major of 2010, as it must be pointed out that, spectacular as he may have appeared on a given streak, Fish has never truly delivered in the Grand Slam events, reaching only two quarterfinals in his decade-long professional career, both of which saw him beaten convincingly. As of the present time, I would still rate both Roddick (who, in spite of his lackluster showings of late, is still likely in my estimation to pick up steam as the US Open series progresses, and can generally be relied upon to deliver at the Open) and Isner (admittedly even less accomplished at Slams than Fish is, but through only three years of play) as better prospects to make waves in New York.

In the meantime, the US Open Series has moved to L.A. for the oddly-titled "Farmers Classic," where the fiery Scot Andy Murray enters as top seed, followed by the likes of lanky young American Sam Querrey, likeable Cypriot Marcos Baghdatis, and the talented, unpredictable Latvian upstart Ernests Gulbis. Murray is a former US Open runner-up, and would place within my top five contenders for this year's event. That said, however, Murray has been utterly abysmal in non-Grand Slam tournaments this season; he has reached the Australian Open final and Wimbledon semis, yet failed to win so much as one small tournament all year.

Murray is in line for a potential third-round meeting with the very dangerous Gulbis, in which I would have reservations about forecasting victory. If he should avoid or get past the Latvian, however, it looks like relatively clear sailing to the final, which could represent an intriguing showdown with Querrey.

More to come soon, as I engage in more in-depth US Open speculation, and, introducing you to another of my major sporting interests, chronicle my personal experiences with boxing greats Joe Frazier and George Foreman.

Summer Hardcourt Season Set to Warm Up

Moderately hokey headlines aside, the ATP's North American summer hardcourt swing is underway in Atlanta, which is hosting a professional tennis tournament for the first time in nine years. The Atlanta event represents the first entry into this year's US Open Series, which tallies points compiled by each player through the North American hardcourt events leading up to and including the US Open, and offers a handsome cash bonus for whichever participant achieves the highest total.

Seeded first in Atlanta is American number one Andy Roddick, who accepted a wildcard entry days before its commencement. Roddick won the last ATP event held in Atlanta to claim the first tour-level title of his professional career, also as a wildcard entrant, way back in 2001. Second is John Isner, of "Isner-Mahut epic" fame, followed by Lleyton Hewitt, who entered the tournament with an injury and flamed out in his opener against Lukas Lacko of Slovakia. Roddick and Isner have both advanced to the quarterfinals, though each was tested more severely in his opening round match than one might have expected- Isner saving two match points to eke out a 4-6, 7-6, 7-6 win over dangerous journeyman Gilles Muller, and Roddick throwing in an uncharacteristically poor second-set tiebreak before reasserting himself in the third to defeat compatriot Rajeev Ram 6-1, 6-7, 6-3.

Though I would stop short of calling it a sure thing, at this stage it appears hard to bet against a Roddick-Isner final, given Roddick's dominant head-to-head records against the other seeds in his half (8-0 against Xavier Malisse, 9-1 against Mardy Fish, 4-1 against Taylor Dent) and the departure of Hewitt, who would have seemed the biggest threat on Isner's side of the draw. I daresay such a final would be something to look forward to, as Roddick and Isner have consistently produced close, hard-fought action through their four previous meetings, and the atmosphere, which would already be electric for a meeting between the top two Americans on home soil, should be even more intense in the aftermath of Isner's rise to public prominence. Roddick leads their series 3-1, but Isner won the most recent encounter at last year's US Open.

A Quick Prognosis Regarding the Final

In spite of the tremendous form shown by Mr. Berdych- who, for the record, bears an uncanny resemblance to an X-Files mutant by the name of Eugene Tooms- in dispatching Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic back-to-back to achieve his place in this final, I feel compelled to favor the experience and head-to-head dominance of world #1 Rafael Nadal on this occasion. Another near-flawless showing from Berdych could see his flat hitting and superior firepower keep Nadal on the defensive and carry him to a historic victory, but the combination of Berdych's established tendency towards choking on the biggest occasions and Nadal's proven tenacity and nerve lead me to see this as unlikely. I will cast my official prediction in favor of a Nadal victory in four sets.

Roddick's Never-Ending Train of Heartache

Andy Roddick takes to the lawns of Wimbledon to participate in a heated tennis epic. He wins the first set with a timely break in its last game, drops the second and third in tiebreaks, then rallies to take the fourth. He appears to hold the upper hand through much of the fifth, the misfortune of serving second notwithstanding. Break points to serve for the match come and go, however, and as the set proceeds deep into extra innings, cracks begin to appear in the once seemingly-impregnable armor of Roddick's service game. At last, one shaky service game sees Roddick broken for the first and only time in the match, and in the process, dismissed in heart-wrenching fashion from the tournament which now stands as the holy grail of his long and compelling career.
A fortnight ago, the preceding text would have appeared quite a specific summary of Roddick's last appearance at Wimbledon 2009. In the aftermath of his 2010 campaign, however, it remains intact to its last word; lightning has struck the same place twice. On a much smaller stage and against a much lesser foe, America's finest practitioner of the tennis game met with the same tragic fate for a second consecutive year.
Like many fans, I have grown increasingly fond of Andy Roddick over the years as his surpassing dedication, persistence, and reverence for the game have shown through. For all his faults, I count him a credit to the game and a sentimental favorite. It is a truly devastating thing, then, the relentless train of heartache that his Grand Slam career has come to represent. I see a man of character and conviction, a fighter possessed of seemingly endless resilience, and yet one who always falls just short of his goal, always clutching at the prize and never quite able to grasp it.
It would seem that Roddick is but a hair too thoughtful, that in the decisive moments, he fails to truly go forth and seize the day, preferring instead to wait for victory to fall in his lap, and that he thus all too often sees it snatched from his hands by an emboldened foe. Is he truly doomed to this lot in his career, or will he at last break free and achieve at least the one final moment of uncompromised glory that could at once atone for all the suffering of the last seven years? Time will tell; until it does, I will continue suffering along with America's beleaguered champion.

An Appetizer Fit to Spoil the Main Course

In several years of closely following Grand Slam tennis tournaments, I have seldom reached the point of true emotional exhaustion prior to the stage at which the titans of the game collide in pitched, high-stakes encounters. The first half of this year's Wimbledon Championships, however, has been a most pointed exception; a week spent arising each morning to immerse myself in ever more gripping, harrowing and historic action, while a treat and a wonderful experience, has repeatedly left me emotionally drained to the point of numbness and fatigue. This being the case, I am thankful for the small eye in this storm of intensity that is afforded by the middle Sunday of Wimbledon, and hope to use it to fully recover my senses and energy for the week to come.

Writing in the wake of the sensation which has reverberated around the world as a result of the aforementioned goings-on, there seems scarcely anything original left to say about them insofar as description or analysis is concerned. Obvious highlights include Roger Federer's narrow aversion of what would have been one of the most tremendous upsets of all time, Rafael Nadal's back-to-back five-set battles, Taylor Dent's new Wimbledon serve-speed record, a rare appearance by the queen of England, and, of course, the historic blood-and-guts war between John Isner and Nicolas Mahut, which hearkened back in spirit to the days of epic bare-knuckle fights such as John L. Sullivan's legendary 75-round victory over Jake Kilrain. The consistent quality of entertainment and groundbreaking historical significance of these Championships has been of such brilliance as to utterly transcend any reasonable expectations.

After such a week, however, I do find myself beginning to wonder whether this year's conclusion might actually come off as something of an anti-climax; what could possibly top what we've already seen? Almost anything short of yet another classic final, supplemented by many engaging twists and turns and subplots on the way there, would summon to mind one of those occasions upon which my family and I would go out to eat at our favorite Mexican-style restaurant. We would be served a delicious helping of tortilla chips and salsa as an appetizer- so delicious, in fact, that I would often find myself disappointed and vaguely indifferent when the actual meal arrived. Here's hoping, then, that whatever magic produced this last week has not worn off. It may mean a few more days spent dragging myself out of bed abnormally early each morning to overload my senses for a few hours as a precursor to a hardy afternoon nap, but in my book, it will be more than worth the trouble.

What do you think? Was this the greatest first week of a Wimbledon event in history? Can and will the second week live up to the first week's standard? Who looks the best bet for winning the title? Has my ongoing obsession with this event reached an embarrassing and unhealthy intensity? Let me know. More to come soon, as I delve into the the remainder of the men's singles draw and discuss my thoughts and hopes regarding competitive prospects for the decisive stages of the tournament.

Queen's Club - Roddick Starts Strong

Andy Roddick displayed confident, workman-like form today in dispatching Igor Kunitsyn of Russia 6-2, 6-1 in 51 minutes.