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DUBAI: Andy Roddick, who flew 6,000 miles and endured jetlag and
sleep loss to travel from Memphis to the Dubai Open, overcame Rafael
Nadal, the man regarded as one of the fittest on the tour, to become
a surprise semifinalist on Thursday.
The sixth-seeded former US Open champion from
the United States, turned in a spirited and impressive display to
win 7-6(5), 6-2 against the second-seeded French Open champion from
Spain.
Roddick was fortunate that the conditions were
relatively warm and fast, and suitable for his big-hitting style.
But although Roddick hit one delivery at 150
mph—only five miles an hour slower than his world record—and
finished the contest with two thundering aces, he was sometimes
surprisingly effective in the rallies.
The match turned dramatically after Roddick had
come back from 0-3 down in the tiebreak and sneaked it 7-5 after
Nadal uncharacteristically over-hit a forehand service return.
“It was difficult,” said Roddick. “All of
a sudden I am down in the tie-break and it is discouraging. But I
hit one of my best shots at 4-4, I really let it fly and that
helped.
“I am not as skilled as some of the guys and
definitely not s fast but one thing I can do is hot a ball pretty
good and I simplified it by letting it go tonight.”
He was aided by another uncharacteristic error
by Nadal at 30-40 in the third game of the second set, when the
ground stroke king struck a forehand topspin into the net from a
half court position.
Nadal never recovered from that service game
loss and Roddick accelerated to a semifinal meeting with another
in-form player, Novak Djokovic.
The third-seeded Australian Open champion from
Serbia overwhelmed Igor Andreev, the world’s No. 34 from Russia,
6-2, 6-1, and has now—following the demise of both Nadal and Roger
Federer—become the favorite for the title.
Earlier, Nikolay Davydenko, the Russian who has
to play with the constant uncertainty of an investigation hanging
around him, earned himself a great chance of reaching only his
second ATP Tour final for 17 months.
The world’s No. 5 from Moscow overcame Briton
Andy Murray 7-5, 6-4, to become another unexpected semifinalist.
Davydenko mixed consistency with aggression with
superb attacks from the baseline against an opponent who had
eliminated world’s No. 1 Roger Federer in the first round.
-- AFP
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