Federer Loses, While Roddick Barely Advances
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ATHENS, Greece – Pumped up in the aftermath of a dramatic win, Andy Roddick bumped into Roger Federer in the locker room and asked his rival how he fared. Talk about a faux pas.
“I lost,” Federer answered, “7-5 in the third.”
The world’s top two tennis players found themselves struggling against low-ranked opponents in the second round of the Olympics yesterday: No. 1 Federer flopped, and no. 2 Roddick flourished.
Federer was beaten 4-6, 7-5, 7-5 by 18-year-old Tomas Berdych of the Czech Republic on Court 1. The Swiss star’s Olympics ended about 3 1 /2 hours later, when he and doubles partner Yves Allegro lost 6-2, 7-6 (7) to Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi of India.
“It’s a terrible day for me. I was aiming for a better result than this,” Federer said. “I wasn’t pleased with my serve, my forehand, my backhand, my movement. That about sums it up. It’s a pity.”
Roddick saved three match points and overcame 2000 silver medalist Tommy Haas of Germany 6-4, 3-6, 9-7 before a raucous crowd at the main stadium.
When Roddick sat down in his courtside chair after the final point, he pointed at the chanting, flag-waving fans and tapped his fist on his chest.
“This Olympic tennis thing is a lot different than anything I’ve encountered. I was pretty nervous out there tonight,” Roddick said. “You’re playing for your country. It’s a lot easier to accept defeat when it’s just on you.”
U.S. tennis teammates rooted for him in the sold-out stands, including Venus Williams. She beat Maja Matevzic of Slovenia 6-0, 6-0 earlier – the first shutout for a man or woman since tennis returned to the Olympics as a medal sport in 1988. The match lasted just 39 minutes. Williams lost with Chanda Rubin in doubles Monday night.
While Williams was nearly flawless, building a 14-1 edge in winners and never losing more than one point in any service game, Federer was uncharacteristically wild.
He made 59 unforced errors and only 19 winners, had 10 double-faults and lost his serve four times, including in the final game.
“Unbelievable,” the 74th-ranked Berdych said. “Maybe Roger was not on his form.”
