Roddick Has Some Fuel Left

MELBOURNE, Australia —  You might say Andy Roddick is one step ahead in the plot to win his first Australian Open.

He’s fresh, not fatigued. Unlike two years ago, Roddick has some spring remaining in his legs for his Australian Open semifinal, which will be today against third-seeded Lleyton Hewitt of Australia.

“The only other time I got this far at the Australian Open, I felt like I was about to fall over walking out to my semifinal match,” said Roddick, who had been drained after a five-hour quarterfinal, featuring a 21-19 fifth set, and went on to lose to Rainer Schuettler of Germany in four sets in the semis.

This time, Hewitt might be the one feeling that way. On Wednesday, No. 2 Roddick easily advanced in a shortened quarterfinal, defeating Nikolay Davydenko of Russia, 6-3, 7-5, 4-1 (retired). Davydenko had problems breathing in the hot conditions and needed on-court treatment.

Later, temperatures dropped steadily as the Hewitt-David Nalbandian quarterfinal plodded along. A routine match turned terrific and Hewitt needed his considerable skills of survival to defeat the No. 9 Argentine, 6-3, 6-2, 1-6, 3-6, 10-8, in 4 hours 5 minutes. Beforehand, Nalbandian had some pointed words about Hewitt’s on-court histrionics. Tension between the two surfaced when they brushed shoulders on a second-set changeover and exchanged sharp looks.

Both needed treatment before the fifth, which ended up lasting 1:41. The second-to-last game featured the shot of the night from Nalbandian at 8-8. He chased a lob back to the baseline and flicked it back between his legs. A stunned Hewitt netted a half volley, but he went on to break Nalbandian’s serve for the decisive break.

Roddick joked he would watch Hewitt-Nalbandian from the comfort of the blackjack table. Not surprisingly, interest in Roddick is growing because of the upcoming semifinal with Hewitt.

After his quarterfinal, Roddick sat with a couple of reporters and was quizzed about his musical tastes, his political views, his ex-coach Brad Gilbert and a recent dinner with former Laker coach Phil Jackson, who is here watching the tournament.

“The conversation just went pretty smoothly,” Roddick said. “He told a couple of [Dennis] Rodman stories, those were pretty funny. We were asking him about some different arenas he’s been to. He was asking some things about tennis.

“I don’t know, I just find it ridiculous I’m in the position to have dinner with someone I admire who was coaching Michael Jordan when I was 8 years old.”

Of course, none of those Rodman stories were for public consumption.

“No, you said printable,” Roddick said, laughing. “I’ve got nothing for you.”

He said he didn’t vote in the last presidential election. “First of all, I didn’t know where I was going to vote from, Florida or Texas.”

Less welcome were observations from Gilbert, who is here doing commentary for ESPN2. He likened the difference between Roger Federer and Roddick to that of the gulf between USC and Oklahoma in football.

“There’s no question it’s a dis,” said Roddick, looking annoyed. “But I’m not going to play that game. I’ve been in the title game.”

That game, the Wimbledon final, went to Federer last year. But it was no Orange Bowl-type blowout. Roddick was asked whether he felt unfortunate to be stuck in the Federer era.

“I think it’s something you’ll look back on at the end of your career. I don’t think so,” he said. “I really don’t think in those terms. I look at it as a challenge. If he ends up being the best ever, I can say I competed with him and gave him a scare a couple of times.”

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One-Shot Deal

Andy Roddick’s only victory against Australian Open semifinal opponent Lleyton Hewitt came at the London Queen’s Club grass tournament last year:

*--* Year Tournament Surface Round Winner Score 2004 Masters Cup Hard Semifinals Hewitt 6-3, 6-2 2004 Queen’s Grass Semifinals Roddick 7-6, 6-3 Club 2001 U.S. Open Hard Quarterfin Hewitt 6-7, 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, als 6-4 2001 French Open Clay Third round Hewitt 7-6, 4-6, 2-2 (ret.) 2001 Ericsson Hard Quarterfin Hewitt 6-3, 6-2 Open als

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