Racing to his right, with all the fervor of a lifeguard sprinting to save a troubled swimmer, Andy Roddick went airborne.
Launching into a desperate dive, Roddick poked a forehand pass up the line and slammed into the court in completing a 7-6 (7), 6-7 (11), 7-5 conquest of Canadian crusher Milos Raonic to capture his 30th career title in Memphis two Sundays ago.
The eighth-ranked Roddick did not see the shot land?he was too busy crashing to the court in a forward roll that bloodied his right elbow and left his baseball cap askew?but heard the roar of the crowd and scrambled to his feet, arms raised in triumph after winning his first title in 10 months.
"That's the best shot I've ever hit in my life, considering the circumstance," said Roddick, who joined Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer as the third active man on the ATP Tour with 30 or more career championships.
Even when he's down, Roddick has a way of looking up. But was that dramatic dive a prelude to a spring rise or a stirring spike momentarily stalling a descent from the top 10?
March may well be the most critical month of Roddick's season.
The 28-year-old Roddick is defending his runner-up result from Indian Wells and will launch defense of his Key Biscayne championship this month. But first Roddick will return to Davis Cup action after a year's sabbatical as he leads the U.S. against host Chile in the March 4-6 first-round tie on the red clay of Santiago in Jim Courier's debut as American captain.
"Certainly, having Andy Roddick commit is a big bonus for the team," Courier said. "He's such a great leader and his record is terrific, obviously. He's done so well over the years and he's been so clutch."
The mere fact that Roddick is returning to Davis Cup?where he has played some of his most passionate tennis?is an encouraging sign, in that committing to the sometimes-arduous travel schedule and varying surfaces of Davis Cup indicates a confidence in both his game and fitness.
Roddick is a more complete player than he was when he won the 2003 U.S. Open; the problem is, his Top 10 competition is much better, more athletically imposing and deeper now than it was then.
Roddick hustles hard, plays with toughness and tenacity, has reached two finals in three tournament starts this season, and resides near the top of the ATP in service games won (90 percent), aces (221) and first-serve points won (80 percent). Yet his tendency to retreat several feet behind the baseline promotes a predictable style of play that can empower opponents and diminish the impact of his seismic serve. That was the case at the Australian Open, where Stanislas Wawrinka made Roddick seem small in scoring a straight-sets sweep in the fourth round that followed a surprising second-round setback to Janko Tipsarevic at the U.S. Open and a disappointing fourth-round exit to Yen-Hsun Lu at Wimbledon.
When you see a player of Roddick's stature grinding it out from well behind the baseline, it evokes memories of Patrick Ewing settling for 16-foot fadeaway jumpers rather than going strong to the hoop.
Though Roddick and Federer are the only two active men with nine consecutive Top 10 finishes, if the lethal-serving American is to retain his spot in the inner sanctum, he must produce at the year's first two Masters 1000 events, where he has a history of success (Roddick has reached the final four at Indian Wells in three of the past four years and is a two-time Key Biscayne champion).
Will Roddick, who sometimes plays predictable points at crunch time, be willing to open it up a bit, let the serve and forehand rip, and take more risk as he did in dispatching Nadal and Tomas Berdych (in succession) to win the Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne last April? Or will he resort to serving big and playing prevent defense from the baseline?
If Roddick is to replicate his 2010 spring revival that showcased some of his best tennis in years, then he must be willing to take more risk. He's got to play bigger and bolder and be more willing to take the first strike in rallies. When he gets the semi-short ball off his serve, he must be willing to step forward in the court and crack his forehand with more ferocity rather then playing it safely with heavy topspin. On the return, Roddick would be wise to alter both his court positioning and the direction of his returns and occasionally drive the ball down the line.
Roddick showed his willingness to give up his body in Memphis and was rewarded with his 30th title. Retaining his place in the Top 10 may depend on his willingness to alter his mindset.
Originally published on ESPN.com.
Source: http://feeds.tennis.com/~r/tenniscom-features/~3/06pzoHqPhck/
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