Mouth-watering clash awaits
July 1st 2009 07:16
AND here we are.
Lleyton Hewitt vs Andy Roddick. Wimbledon quarter-final. Centre court. Australia vs America – and we might actually win this one.
There is no more anticipated All England Club quarter-final clash this year than this one.
Hewitt has won six of the pair’s 11 matches, but Roddick has claimed their past four and emerged victorious on both occasions they have met on grass.
Each of those meetings was at the Queen’s Club, including last month when the confident American won in two tie-breaker sets.
Both players have been challenged at this year’s tournament, but Roddick has had the tougher draw and appears to be rounding into top form.
He will be favourite, with Hewitt adopting the not unwanted underdog tag.
Crafty Czech Radek Stepanek has the ability to produce top-quality tennis, but his net-rushing style unsettled Hewitt a little too easily in the fourth round.
Hewitt also showed signs he is susceptible to big serving against German Philipp Petzschner in the previous round and there is no bigger server in the men’s game than Roddick.
But, by the same token, there are few better returners in the sport than Hewitt and the South Australian baseliner will have to be at his best in that area to win.
Roddick is nowhere near as comfortable at the net as Stepanek and this will play in Hewitt’s favour.
The result is likely to come down to their respective serves.
Roddick has the ability to consistently land his booming first serve and God help Hewitt if this is the case.
But Hewitt’s own service percentages may be the key.
He has shown he can hang in during opponents’ hot patches and is reportedly finally at peak fitness.
But his tie-break record is shaky at best and unless he fires down his fair share of aces and wins enough cheap points off his first service he will be in trouble.
A first-serve percentage closer to 60 per cent is also a must because he has regularly slipped under 50 per cent in big games in recent years.
Meanwhile, giant Croat Ivo Karlovic may have a better chance against Wimbledon king Roger Federer than most realise.
Karlovic is finally fulfilling his promise at the All England Club, having trumped two top-10 combatants in the third and fourth rounds after losing in the first round the last four years.
He is yet to drop a service game and has beaten Federer – he won 7-6 in the third set at Cincinnati last year.
There is no doubt the Swiss maestro is a deservedly heavy favourite, but don’t completely rule out one of Karlovic’s amusing post-match celebrations before the day is out.
German Tommy Haas will also be looking to turn back the clock against Serbian world No.4 Novak Djokovic, a player he defeated in the Halle final just before Wimbledon.
A repeat triumph is unlikely considering Djokovic’s form so far in the Championships, but Haas is always a dangerous opponent.
Briton Andy Murray should end Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero’s giant-killing run, but he will have to play better than he did against Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka last round.
Wawrinka is a very good player and Murray continually dropped the ball short against him in rallies.
Ferrero will similarly punish Murray if he repeats this and may even result in a few million broken British hearts.
>>> Read AFL Power Poll #11 below
Lleyton Hewitt vs Andy Roddick. Wimbledon quarter-final. Centre court. Australia vs America – and we might actually win this one.
There is no more anticipated All England Club quarter-final clash this year than this one.
Hewitt has won six of the pair’s 11 matches, but Roddick has claimed their past four and emerged victorious on both occasions they have met on grass.
Each of those meetings was at the Queen’s Club, including last month when the confident American won in two tie-breaker sets.
Both players have been challenged at this year’s tournament, but Roddick has had the tougher draw and appears to be rounding into top form.
He will be favourite, with Hewitt adopting the not unwanted underdog tag.
Crafty Czech Radek Stepanek has the ability to produce top-quality tennis, but his net-rushing style unsettled Hewitt a little too easily in the fourth round.
Hewitt also showed signs he is susceptible to big serving against German Philipp Petzschner in the previous round and there is no bigger server in the men’s game than Roddick.
But, by the same token, there are few better returners in the sport than Hewitt and the South Australian baseliner will have to be at his best in that area to win.
Roddick is nowhere near as comfortable at the net as Stepanek and this will play in Hewitt’s favour.
The result is likely to come down to their respective serves.
Roddick has the ability to consistently land his booming first serve and God help Hewitt if this is the case.
But Hewitt’s own service percentages may be the key.
He has shown he can hang in during opponents’ hot patches and is reportedly finally at peak fitness.
But his tie-break record is shaky at best and unless he fires down his fair share of aces and wins enough cheap points off his first service he will be in trouble.
A first-serve percentage closer to 60 per cent is also a must because he has regularly slipped under 50 per cent in big games in recent years.
Meanwhile, giant Croat Ivo Karlovic may have a better chance against Wimbledon king Roger Federer than most realise.
Karlovic is finally fulfilling his promise at the All England Club, having trumped two top-10 combatants in the third and fourth rounds after losing in the first round the last four years.
He is yet to drop a service game and has beaten Federer – he won 7-6 in the third set at Cincinnati last year.
There is no doubt the Swiss maestro is a deservedly heavy favourite, but don’t completely rule out one of Karlovic’s amusing post-match celebrations before the day is out.
German Tommy Haas will also be looking to turn back the clock against Serbian world No.4 Novak Djokovic, a player he defeated in the Halle final just before Wimbledon.
A repeat triumph is unlikely considering Djokovic’s form so far in the Championships, but Haas is always a dangerous opponent.
Briton Andy Murray should end Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero’s giant-killing run, but he will have to play better than he did against Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka last round.
Wawrinka is a very good player and Murray continually dropped the ball short against him in rallies.
Ferrero will similarly punish Murray if he repeats this and may even result in a few million broken British hearts.
>>> Read AFL Power Poll #11 below
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