[snaillyyy]

Agreed Deb. He seems to have lost confidence in his ability to just step up and close out at game. Major mental/confidence issues to be worked through. IMO doesnt seem to completely believe that the improvements in his game can guarantee he can pull out a tough win.

[Deboogle!.]

well even when he was at the top and high confidence, he was never really great at just sort of tightening the noose in the second set. But I agree, it's worse lately.

[Carito_90]

Carole I just realised you have the same quote in your siggy as me

Okay, So I see how many of you want the old Andy back, but there are many things the old Andy didn't have that the actual one does. So I think the perfect Andy would be a combination of a lot of things during these last 2 years, but then again, any player would be at his/her best if you got all of his/her good things combined But what I mean is that we still haven't seen THE Andy, I mean, the Andy that is mentally and physically at his BEST (at the same time, of course). Maybe he has been close, but not quite THERE... I don't know if you get what I mean but then again, that's kinda off topic.

I don't think Andy has been playing bad, he showed some amazing tennis in IW and apparently in the match against Ancic in DC. His wrist injury was obviously dissapointing for everyone, I think he would have gone far if he hadn't got that but... what can you do, it certainly wasn't something he can be blamed for. Now, some people would say "he should have fought through the injury"... yes, you can do that if you're 50, 60 in the world and you have nothing to lose, but not if you are #3 in the world and you have lots of points to defend or win ahead. Its easier to drop 30 spots in the ranking when you're 50 in the world and gain them back, but its something completely different to drop 6 when you're #3 and be able to gain them back.
So I guess he can fight through an injury AS LONG as someone tells him or he knows he can't make it worse (which is not very likely). So yeah that's what I think as far as injures and the other stuff i talked about

I know I didn't make a whole lotta sense but... I don't know maybe someone can get my drift at least

[snaillyyy]

Originally Posted by Carito_90

Carole I just realised you have the same quote in your siggy as me

Great minds Caro

[Golfnduck]

Originally Posted by Debstah

PMac and Cliffy are talking during Roger's match about how great players, when they're up a set and on serve in the second, will really step it up at 3-3 or 4-3 or so in the second to put the match away. Andre did it earlier today and they are talking about Federer doing it right now.

Roger just choked. He was serving for the match at 5-3 and choked it away. He just lost the 2nd set 7-5

[Iheartandy&roger]

I'm scared where Andy is going this year so far it's really bad luck and it's hurting him for sure!

[Deboogle!.]

Originally Posted by Golfnduck

Roger just choked. He was serving for the match at 5-3 and choked it away. He just lost the 2nd set 7-5

Roger is 43-1 since last August, I think he's entitled to have a rough match once in a great while. Doesn't change the point that Andy OFTEN has a tough time raising his level and putting a match away in the 2nd set.

[Golfnduck]

That is true. Hopefully Andy watched this match. Roger isn't that unbeatable.

[euroka1]

Even the best of us can choke but some of us do it more often than others. That was a pretty tense match.

[Deboogle!.]

I meant to reply to this post before and forgot

Originally Posted by Carito_90

Okay, So I see how many of you want the old Andy back, but there are many things the old Andy didn't have that the actual one does.

2005 Andy's game with 2003 Andy's head... can we do that?

Originally Posted by Carito_90

I don't think Andy has been playing bad, he showed some amazing tennis in IW and apparently in the match against Ancic in DC.

This is quite true. (I finally got the Ancic match on tape from my parents and watched it, such a different view than in person but yes, he played very well in that match and mentally recovered nicely after losing the first set). It's just the big matches that have been a problem

Originally Posted by Carito_90

So I guess he can fight through an injury AS LONG as someone tells him or he knows he can't make it worse (which is not very likely). So yeah that's what I think as far as injures and the other stuff i talked about

Andy has a great team around him. Dougie is the best in the business, or certainly among the best - and Dean certainly knows how to deal wth an injured player if he dealt with Todd Martin for 8 years Andy doesn't seem to take unnecessary risks, he seems to know when he should continue to play and when he should not.

He could've continued to play the match against Fernando but he would probably have lost, and he could possibly have done more damage - he absolutely did the right thing by retiring and he absolutely did the right thing by pulling out of his Memphis match. Let's just be thankful the injuries both ended up to be minor and won't really affect him THAT much, at least not in the long-term. At least they were unlucky flukeish things and nothing chronic/serious/due to poor fitness.

Yea it sucks b/c he almost definitely probably would've won Memphis and most likely would have won at least a few rounds at Miami, but I'm just trying to believe that it will all happen for a reason and I'm just trying to have faith that Andy will be smart and use the time where he can't play to do other things that will benefit his results on court.

Originally Posted by Carito_90

I know I didn't make a whole lotta sense but... I don't know maybe someone can get my drift at least

You definitely did make sense!!!

[Fumus]

Blarg...wow...I just finished all the back reading. Yea I was kidding about the visor, silly shots, etc. I think he's grown up and he's gotten past that, even though that was alittle more entertaining to watch, what was his record like when he acted that way?

I think Andy's game now is good enough to beat anyone. He just needs to serve better in tbs, convert bps more often and suddenly alot of the matches Andy has been losing that he shouldn't be, he will be winning. I think winning big matches for big titles is the only he will be confident again.

[Deboogle!.]

There's an article called "What's wrong with Roddick?" here: http://www.nysun.com/article/11331

but you have to pay to get access.

[Fumus]

http://edition.cnn.com/2005/SPORT/03...nis.mailbag.5/

Tennis mailbag, with CNN's Candy Reid

Q. Hi, first of all I love your presentation of world sport keep up the good job. What's wrong with Andy Roddick? I personally think he's the best male tennis player but he seems unfocused.
Thanks, Josephine Daudu

A. Well Josephine, firstly I'm glad you enjoy the show. Secondly I don't think Roddick is un-focused but it does look like he's trying to work on a few things at the moment and it always takes time (unless of course you have the natural ability of Roger Federer, who it seems can hit any shot at any time!)

Roddick is approaching the net much more than he has in the past because he knows it will help him in the long run. But as any athlete knows, you can work on something in practice, but confidence will only come by executing it in competition.

Put it this way, the two people Roddick has terrible records against are the two players who are ranked above him, Federer and Hewitt, so in order to get back to number one he has to do a few things differently.

[blosson]

I think Roger was underestimating Zabaleta. He usually doen't choke when playing top players. I'm sure he was thinking 6/2 6/2 before the match.

I'm also sure Zabaleta is very happy for taking a set from The Fed.

[Deboogle!.]

Zabaleta was fearless and never accepted defeat, he just kept going at Roger and attacked his FOREHAND! If the top players could play Roger like that, they'd win more often.