It barely mattered what the opponent’s name was last night.
For posterity’s sake, let the official record show that it was Xavier Malisse. But the fact is, when Andy Roddick serves like this, he’s probably unbeatable no matter whom he faces. Period.
Last night at Arthur Ashe Stadium, Roddick’s serve was absolutely magnificent. Pick any stat you want to decorate its prowess – he was never broken in 16 games, he reached 139 mph, he had nine aces and zero double faults. All worthy nominees, but how about this:
Roddick won 73 of his possible 90 service points. Absurd.
“It was tough conditions,” the No. 4 seed said after his 6-3, 6-4, 7-6 (7-5) win that was interrupted twice by rain. “I’m just glad to get through it.”
Roddick, now 7-0 lifetime vs. Malisse, moves into the Open quarterfinals for the third straight year. He’ll face the winner of the Sjeng Schalken-Rainer Schuettler match, which was suspended last night with Schalken leading 5-1.
Malisse, a talented Belgian who’s ranked 67th, didn’t play badly. His serve, too, was impressive, and at one point he ripped off three straight aces, capping the barrage with a 127-mph rocket. But Malisse also committed 31 unforced errors, an unsightly mark for a three-set match.
And, of course, he couldn’t touch Roddick’s serve. It’s hard to fully characterize just how dominant Roddick’s serve was. Forget the fact that he had only nine aces – that’s only because Malisse managed to just barely get a piece of about 20 other blasts. Most of the time, Roddick’s service games were over in under a minute. Four points in a blink. Show-off.
Waiting for the court to dry before the match, Roddick bit his nails and paced the locker room. He was clearly getting antsy to begin and when the match finally started at 9:15, he established the night’s theme by holding serve with a love-game.
But the rain wasn’t through just yet. Play was suspended twice more, once for an hour and once for just a few minutes.
The conditions were hardly ideal – Roddick slipped after one shot and Malisse repeatedly examined his sneaker sole for moisture – but the players played on. It’s Roddick who will play a bit longer.
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Today’s schedule
Play begins at 11 a.m.
Arthur Ashe Stadium
Day Session
Kim Clijsters (1), Belgium, vs. Amelie Mauresmo (5), France, comp. of susp. match
Lindsay Davenport (3), U.S., vs. Paola Suarez (24), Argentina
David Nalbandian (13), Argentina, vs. Roger Federer (3), Switzerland
Night Session
Play begins at 7:00
Jennifer Capriati (6), U.S., vs. Ai Sugiyama (15) or Francesca Schiavone (29)
Anastasia Myskina (7), Russia, or Mary Pierce, France, vs. Justine Henin-Hardenne (2), Belgium
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Louis Armstrong Stadium
Ai Sugiyama (15), Japan, vs. Francesca Schiavone (29), Italy
Juan Carlos Ferrero (3), Spain, vs. Todd Martin, U.S., comp. of susp. match
Carlos Moya (7), Spain, vs. Younes El Aynaoui (22), Morocco
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Grandstand
Paradorn Srichaphan (11), Thailand, vs. Lleyton Hewitt (6), Australia, comp. of susp. match
Wayne Arthurs and Paul Hanley (5), Australia, vs. Mark Knowles, Bahamas, and Daniel Nestor (3), Canada
Svetlana Kuznetsova, Russia, and Martina Navratilova (4), U.S., vs. Henrieta Nagyova, Slovakia, and Maja Matevzic, Slovenia
Lori McNeil, U.S., and Virginia Wade, Britain, vs. Olga Morozova, Russia, and Kathy Rinaldi, U.S.
