FOUR years ago, Andy Roddick had no idea how he was ever going to beat Roger Federer at Wimbledon; one year ago he was uncertain that he would ever be able to beat anyone of note at any grand slam tournament ever again. And yet here Roddick is today, striding out to meet Federer for the 21st time in his career with the biggest prize in tennis at stake.
Beating Federer may still be something of an issue – in their 20 previous meetings, he has won twice – but the player Federer will see today is slimmer, fitter and faster than he has ever been. He is also playing better than anyone – himself include
d – can remember. The way he shouldered Andy Murray aside in the semi-final was a devastating display of power, aggression and touch. And Roddick may be known for many things, but touch is not one of them.
Roddick's serve was unstoppable. Not only did he pound Murray with 21 aces, but he was also hitting the first serve with 75 per cent accuracy. His forehand was bludgeoning, as expected, but his backhand was accurate and varied – he could thump it, he could slice it and he was confident enough to try anything with it. And he was volleying. Volleying well and intelligently.
Many coaches have tried to make Roddick follow up his serve with a sprint to the net, but once he got there he was usually left flapping at thin air. Against Murray, he was picking his approach shots with care and attacking with venom. He was even picking up volleys from his shoelaces and turning them into clean winners. This was a new Andy Roddick – one who could really give Federer a run for his money today. In their three previous grand slam finals, Roddick has managed to win just two sets and when they met for the second consecutive year in the 2005 Wimbledon final, Roddick was walloped and he knew it. But back then he was still a two-trick pony – huge serve and thumping forehand. Such niceties as court craft, tactics and constructing a point seemed beyond him. When he was in a tight corner, he just tried to hit the ball harder in the hope that it would blast him to victory. Against Federer, that was never going to work.
As the rest of the field chased Federer and then Nadal, they improved every aspect of their game in order to compete with the men at the top. Roddick, meanwhile, seemed to be going backwards and by the time he was knocked out last year in the second round in SW19 by Janko Tipsarevic, he was on the verge of throwing in the towel. Sitting down with his then girlfriend – now his wife – Brooklyn Decker, he wondered if he had what it took to compete. "Last year after I played here, that was a hard, hard couple of weeks," he said. "Brook and I had a lot of talks on if I still thought I could play and at least be towards the top of the game. I definitely openly questioned it at that point."
Decker managed to talk him around and he credits his new wife with being a vital and stabilising influence on his life and his work. But if she gave him the emotional support to keep trying, Larry Stefanki gave him the building blocks to revive his career. Roddick recruited the former coach of John McEnroe, Marcelo Rios, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Tim Henman and Fernando Gonzalez at the end of last year and as their first six months together have ticked by, so Roddick's results have got progressively better. "This off-season, we said, you know what, if you're not going to be up there, let's at least not wonder," Roddick explained. "Let's prepare yourself and give yourself every opportunity. I did work real hard and was committed, and have been committed, from everything to diet to sleep to everything. So I certainly gave myself every opportunity to succeed.
"Larry is certainly well-studied. It's not always the same, it doesn't feel monotonous. I certainly got the sense that he believed that we could get back to this point. That was large."
What has been most impressive about Roddick's run to the final has been his air of calm and control. A normally volatile character, one the umpires know all too well, he has moved through the rounds with a quiet determination. After ten years on tour, he had learned the art of self restraint – and discovered that it made him a better player.
"I'm just trying to stay the course," he said. "I'm just going about it. I haven't really gotten too up or too down at any point in this event, or this year for that matter. So I'm just going to go try to do the same thing, just on to the next point. I was fully aware that there might be ups and downs against Andy. I just wanted to kind of keep the same face regardless."
Whether a happy marriage, an improved backhand and volley and a calm approach are enough to carry him past Federer today is debatable. But the Andy Roddick who Federer will face on Centre Court is not the same Andy Roddick he has beaten 18 times in the past. Andy Murray will tell him that.
