Last night following his hard earned four set quarterfinal win over Andy Roddick, Novak Djokovic went a little too far during a postmatch interview with USA Network’s Michael Barkan dissing his elder competitor for sarcastic remarks made regarding the No.3 seeded Serb’s health following a Round of 16 win.

Apparently, the 21 year-old Australian Open champion and 2007 U.S. Open runner-up took the reference of his “16 injuries” to heart and indicated on court that he didn’t have that many injuries to beat Roddick. Not surprisingly, the very talented player was booed by the Arthur Ashe Stadium crowd who for the most part were in the former 2003 Open champion’s corner. It’s been five years since the 26 year-old American won his only grand slam which also sadly signifies the last one won by a homegrown male singles’ player.

After getting the treatment from a large Roddick contingent while only minimal Nole supporters applauded his efforts, Djokovic didn’t help himself much going on step further about the criticism:

“They (the crowd) are already against me because they think I am faking everything, so sorry.”

Not a wise move which just increased the disdain and most likely added supporters to four-time rating champ Roger Federer for their semifinal. The classy 27 year-old Swiss Maestro has never gotten into this kind of situation and should have overwhelming support whenever the 2007 Final rematch takes place. They’re calling for heavy rain on Super Saturday which could push the women’s final between revitalized American Serena Williams and No.2 Serbian Jelena Jankovic along with the two men’s semis between the now top four ranked players in the world with Andy Murray taking over No.4 to Sunday.

Djokovic has come under the radar due to all the injury timeouts he’s used even getting ripped by the normally calm Tommy Robredo, who fell in five sets to him a couple of rounds earlier.

“I never made medical timeout because I wanted to distract the opponent or make the result look worse. I just took the medicals to help me out,” Djokovic answered late last night.

“Maybe the people think that I’m exaggerating with these things, but it’s nothing bad. I twist my ankle, I feel bad. I get the pain in the back. I just want to make it right. Andy was always nice to me when I got to the tour, so this was just a clear misunderstanding.”

It was just a year ago that Djokovic was a fan favorite with New Yorkers who enjoyed his dead on player impersonations while serving. Sometimes, that didn’t sit too well with some of his peers which explains why he’s cut it out of his matches this year.

“It’s different,” he said. “Once you win the Grand Slam title and win a couple more major events, you get more attention from everybody, and it’s logical. I don’t want to make any impersonations any more. It’s not that I don’t want to. This is something that people will get wrong. And this is exactly the reason, and this is exactly the situation I don’t want to be in — fighting with people, with the press, and this is absolutely not me.”

Perhaps one of the ATP’s top players who enjoys getting a laugh or two should heed the advice of Roddick.

“It was completely meant in jest,” he explained. “I figure if you’re going to joke and imitate other people and do the whole deal, then you should take it.

“If someone wants to focus in on that and use it, then by all means, but especially in Novak’s case, if you’re going to dish out all the stuff, then be able to take it with a smile, is the only part that I don’t quite agree with.”

Misunderstandings happen all the time. Especially in sports. As long as they’re on the same page, that’s good for future meetings. Though you just know some of the old school guys such as John McEnroe and Jimmy Connors who was in attendance last night watching his former pupil wouldn’t mind seeing some of that bad blood which could give a sometimes bland sport a little extra juice a la those classic meetings between the former American stars. We don’t see many heated tennis rivalries anymore. And the ones that are a la Federer-Nadal lack that sorta substance due to the level of respect each has for each other.

Djokovic shouldn’t expect too much support the rest of this weekend no matter what happens.

It’s not often you get a chance to redeem yourself at a place which shall soon act like a second home. That’s exactly the kind of opportunity 26 year-old Andy Roddick was presented with late in the fourth set of his men’s U.S. Open quarterfinal against Novak Djokovic at Ashe Stadium Thursday night.

He had been handled easily during the first pair of sets both owned by the 21 year-old No.3 ranked Serb who apparently used some post-match Roddick comments regarding his injuries to break the best server in the sport an unheard of four times for a 6-2, 6-3 lead. Prior, he had only been broken three times all tournament.

“That’s not nice, anyhow, to say in front of this crowd that I have 16 injuries and that I’m faking,” a furious Djokovic later acknowledged to Michael Barkan drawing boos once the match was over.

But here was the five years older popular No.8 ranked American refusing to go down easily getting an early break and cruising 6-3 capturing the third set to get back in the match giving the New York bipartisan crowd hopes of a big comeback.

With the former 2003 U.S. Open champion finally in a groove with his serve, he began dictating play taking it to his opponent reversing what had been dished out the first two sets. At three apiece on serve, Roddick took the first three points on Djokovic’s serve setting up triple break point. However, the feisty 2008 Australian Open winner wouldn’t give in right away ratcheting up his serve to fight off all three including the second with a perfectly placed inside out forehand crosscourt near the line.

But before he could find his way out of trouble, a determined Roddick pushed on outhitting him to setup a fourth break point. Certainly, this would be the one which would not only get him that one elusive break he needed but be enough to get him even and take the fourth set. Or so everyone watching thought including USA Network/CBS tennis commentator John McEnroe. When he played a perfect point working a now easily flustered Djokovic side to side before nailing a rocket backhand up the line out of his reach for a winner, Roddick finally had that break and was only a couple of service holds away from giving everyone what they came to see. A fifth and final set.

The perfect way for USA’s 25 years of outstanding Open coverage to bow out for good. When he backed it up with four consecutive aces to go up 5-3, there seemed to be little doubt where such a high stakes match was headed. Following a Djokovic hold, Roddick easily took the first couple of points to go up 30-Love. Two more points from destiny and a pro-Andy crowd rocking like it once had for him when he cameback from a couple of sets and match point down versus David Nalbandian before winning the whole thing. Only instead of the inevitable Hollywood finish we were looking for, those two big points never came.

What followed was shocking. After an errant forehand, Roddick double faulted twice to suddenly give Djokovic three straight and his first break point since the second set. It was the only look the big Serb needed as he got an out wide serve back and then after Roddick approached, Djokovic came up with a perfect topspin backhand lob which was out of reach landing a foot inside the baseline.

“You know what? I honestly don’t feel like they were super-tight doubles,” Roddick said. “I had been playing pretty high-risk, high-reward tennis to get back and I probably wasn’t about to stop.”

Just like that, it was five all. Back on serve. Both players would hold one final time to force the fourth set to a tiebreaker. It would be well played. When it looked like he might be done already trailing by a minibreak, Roddick came up with the goods smacking another backhand winner to get it back on serve 4-5.

Here came the two biggest serves of the night. It was on his racket. Exactly where he preferred it to be. The first serve landed deep in the box and couldn’t be handled by Djokovic clocked at 142. Five-all. One more serve for a chance to setup set point. If he could get this one, just maybe not being able to serve it out moments earlier wouldn’t comeback to haunt him.

Here was the point of the match which Djokovic returned to get into and there was Roddick striking the ball as hard as he could trying his best to get it by his opponent hitting every shot well. Inside out forehands. Backhands better than he’d ever struck for most of his career. But on each one, Djokovic hustled and reached out for getting them back. Finally, he decided to change it up going for a slice backhand drop. Only problem was this one didn’t make it over the net handing the guy on the other side the one big break he needed.

“A bad shot,” Roddick admitted after falling 6-2, 6-3, 3-6, 7-6 (5).

One big Djokovic serve later, his forehand reply sailed five feet long allowing last year’s runner-up to escape and emphatically point to his chest pounding it almost in anger over the Davis Cup atmosphere and definitely over those comments referencing his health which were really said tongue in cheek by one of the good sports in the game despite what’s at the end of the day a still disappointing career with only one grand slam. The one in which he hugged that trophy after blasting Juan Carlos Ferrero off the court following that comeback versus Nalbandian, who a round earlier that year knocked out Roger Federer. The same guy who hasn’t lost since here in Flushing Meadows.

“It was completely meant in jest,” a disappointed Roddick lamented following one of his toughest defeats when you really felt he had a chance to go all the way much like that special run.

“I should know better. But listen, I joke all the time. I don’t think anyone in their right mind takes me serious.”

To show what kind of character guy he is, he still sought out Djokovic in private clearing up the confusion.

“He made a joke and it was a misunderstanding, so I don’t blame it on him,” Djokovic later indicated an hour later after that postmatch circus which drew the ire. “Maybe I exaggerated and reacted bad in that moment. I apologize.”

What he won’t have to apologize for was summoning up what he needed to finish off a game Roddick who looked poised to do what Tommy Robredo did a round earlier taking it the distance. With already having worked awfully hard to win in four sets over future Croat star Marin Cilic and then overcoming the elements to outlast Robredo, no way Djokovic wanted any part of another extra set. Perhaps he got some help from an unlikely source but he wasn’t saying afterwards.

Instead, he’ll advance to a rematch of last year’s final in which he blew leads in the first two sets tossing away set points before losing in straights to four-time defending champion Federer. He can take solace knowing he exacted revenge ousting the 12-time grand slam winner down under in this same round also in straights even if the Swiss Maestro wasn’t 100 percent battling mono. What tennis player is totally healthy by the end of a challenging two week major?

With the women’s semis scheduled for later today, Djokovic knows he could get another break due to the weather forecast which calls for rain all day tomorrow on Super Saturday. The Open organizers have already started making arrangements with networks to shift the women’s final to Sunday and the men’s to Monday.

That certainly couldn’t hurt his chances. Especially with a very focused Federer waiting looking to pay him back and prove he still has what it takes to win for a fifth straight time and take the final major of what’s been labeled a disappointing season. This despite runner-up in Roland Garros again, losing his Wimbledon crown in epic fashion and a now record 18 straight semifinal appearances in slams.

As for Roddick, he referenced Djokovic’s sarcasm which as recently as last year included dead on impersonations which those same New Yorkers which jeered him loved.

“I figure if you’re going to joke and imitate other people and do the whole deal, then you should take it. Listen, if someone makes fun of me I’m most likely going to laugh,” Roddick pointed out. “I’m sorry he took it that way. … I don’t think I was over the line. It wasn’t my intention, and, you know, I’m sorry he felt that way. Maybe I did him a favor tonight.”

Probably. And in the process, hurt himself though in the end, it was the vaunted serve and that huge point late in the breaker which send him packing.

It might not be the end result he wanted with having sought busy Davis Cup captain and CBS/ESPN analyst Patrick McEnroe’s advice along with coming in with the hottest fiancee anyone’s ever seen in breathtaking SI swimsuit model Brooklyn Decker. So, it’s not all bad for Roddick.

Far from it. But we bet he wished he had those couple of serves over.

John McEnroe often talks about how sometimes, a player sees a couple of top favorites struggling to win their matches and can draw extra motivation from it. Perhaps that’s how Andy Roddick felt waiting around a little longer than expected after four-time defending U.S. Open champ Roger Federer was taken the distance by hard slugging Russian Igor Andreev before coming up with the goods in a very exciting 6-7 (5), 7-6 (5), 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 Round of 16 victory to advance into the quarterfinals.

On a day which began later than expected due to another top contender Novak Djokovic needing to overcome physical elements in the heat as well as his gritty Spanish opponent Tommy Robredo 4-6, 6-2, 6-3, 5-7, 6-3, the 12-time Swiss slam champion was forced to dig deep as well into his bag of tricks reaching for something unfamiliar in recent times- the net. With his forehand going off for an untimely number of miscues with almost half of his 60 errors, Federer decided to switch tactics and come into the net more than usual.

The strategy paid dividends as he won a good share of key points finishing 58-for-84 (69 percent) including fighting off four break chances in one service game where Andreev mustered all he could in a last desperate attempt to get the final set back on serve. One save in particular might just have been the difference between winning and losing as Federer neatly picked up a tough half volley intentionally leaving it short forcing his opponent to hustle for a backhand which he blocked with a forehand reply that cut it almost too fine landing smack on the right line. The No.2 ranked player pumped his fist twice before eventually holding to plenty of support from a pro-Federer Ashe Stadium crowd.

Before that pivotal point, he had had opportunities to go up double break but just couldn’t find the right touch on his bread and butter shot either netting it when he had it lined up or going for too much missing it a foot wide leaving both former Open winners McEnroe and special guest Boris Becker noting a disturbing difference in Federer’s game. Becker would later say after one miss:

“In 2007, he makes that shot.“

But as McEnroe pointed out at the end of the day, as long as he came out winning that final point, Federer could be happy knowing he moved on needing to go five for only the third time in his U.S. Open career and first since that epic five setter played over two days in which he defeated Andre Agassi in very tough windy conditions four years ago. Something a very happy and smiling Federer pointed out later in an on court interview with USA Network’s Michael Barkan.

“I don’t give myself the opportunity that much, you know, because I always win easily,” he explained following a huge double pump of the fists along with an emotional big scream which the New York crowd loved. He’ll next play surprising qualifier Gilles Muller who continued his run to the quarters upsetting No.5 seeded Russian Nikolay Davydenko 6-4, 4-6, 6-3, 7-6 (10) fighting off seven set points which would’ve forced a fifth set leaving a defeated player tossing his racket.

As for Federer, he properly added of his victory which took more than three and a half hours to complete:

“I was just really pleased with my fighting spirit.”

That same fighting spirit was enough to pull a younger Djokovic through despite a very stiff challenge from Robredo. In all sorts of discomfort due to a turned ankle and breathing issues which stirred up images of his past, the No.3 seeded Serb tried very hard to get it done in four even getting a couple of break points. But Robredo hung tough serving his way out of trouble before finding that one break he needed on a wild Djokovic forehand miss to force the final set.

However, Djokovic steadied himself really stinging the ball and applying the pressure to his opponent whose fall which looked harmless might’ve done more damage tightening his right shoulder early in the deciding set. Afterwards, he misfired on more shots allowing the 21 year-old Australian Open champ to take control. From there, after a hold he got that second break concluding matters which meant he didn’t have to serve it out.

“Just trying to show them, you know, how much effort I put into this match,” Djokovic analyzed of pointing to his heart emphatically, legs and head while looking to his box where family and coach celebrated the hard fought win.

He then properly added:

“Somehow, I managed.”

With his fourth round match delayed due to the previous couple of five setters, a focused Andy Roddick took to Ashe and put on a show for his pro-crowd playing arguably the most efficient tennis of his career by easily dismissing 11th seeded Chilean gunslinger Fernando Gonzalez 6-2, 6-4, 6-1.

Just how utterly dominant was the recently turned 26 year-old with the most beautiful audience fiancee Brooklyn Decker looking on along with “new coach” Patrick McEnroe? The very confident former 2003 Open champion served incredibly well winning 93 percent (37 of 40) on his first serve and a very impressive 73 percent (16 of 22) on his second serve meaning that he only dropped nine total points on serve which explained why he required only an hour and 27 minutes to finish off a beaten Gonzalez who just never looked in it.

Roddick not only served well but played the kind of clean tennis which frustrated his opponent. In sharp contrast, he committed only seven unforced errors to his opponent’s 33. Playing unbelievable defense, several times he hustled down balls keeping rallies alive waiting for an errant Gonzalez miss or working his way back in the rally before finishing it off with one of his 30 winners.

One such big point saw him up 5-4 with a set point on Gonzalez’ serve. On it, the feisty 28 year-old Olympic silver medalist tried to seize control of it by dictating play with his top heavy shots. However, the No.8 seeded American stayed right with him eventually drawing the Chilean into net and then outwaited him before ripping a perfect backhand crosscourt for a winner to finish off the second set in style with a couple of pumps of the fist.

It wouldn’t take long to dispatch Gonzalez in the third set as his more consistent aggressive style which also saw him win 69 percent at the net (20 of 29) proved to be too much to overcome. Though a couple of big backhands produced the only break chance which Roddick quickly erased with some more solid play before holding for 4-1.

Following his fifth break of the match, a very happy Roddick served it out with ease nailing a couple of his eight aces including one out wide before celebrating with a large smile while enjoying the New York spotlight.

“I’ve got to feel good,” he told Barkan of meeting a weary Djokovic this Thursday night in what promises to be a quality quarterfinal. “He’s got about 16 injuries right now.”

Roddick should feel good because while two of the heavy favorites struggled to move on, he made a dangerous foe look routine. We’ll see if it carries over.

Dementieva and Jankovic setup Eastern Europe semi clash: On the women’s side which has seen its share of upsets, there were no surprises Tuesday as both Elena Dementieva and Jelena Jankovic easily advanced to an all Eastern European semifinal showdown on Friday.

The No.5 seeded Russian Dementieva who took Olympic gold in Beijing continued her steady play easily getting past No.15 Patty Schnyder 6-2, 6-3. She’s a former finalist here and is aiming for her first grand slam title. The 26 year-old veteran will have to get past No.2 seeded Serbian Jankovic, who for once didn’t need three sets to eliminate experienced 28 year-old Austrian Sabille Bammer 6-1, 6-4.

The winner could likely face either Williams sister. In their 17th ever career meeting later tonight, big sis Venus Williams will battle little sis Serena Williams for a spot in the semis while Russian Dinara Safina takes on Italian Flavia Pennetta earlier today.

With Venus taking three of the last four meetings including an exciting Wimbledon final 7-5, 6-4, the series is all knotted at eight apiece.

Not for long.

Believe it or not, the first week of the U.S. Open has come and gone fairly quickly with September now in full swing. So hard to fathom but the tennis season does come and go like that when you have the French and Wimbledon in a month span and the Open six weeks later here in NYC.

Some quick musings:

-I’m not too surprised that James Blake had a quick exit losing in a disappointing straight sets to close buddy and fellow American Mardy Fish. It was apparent from that first round five set epic struggle over Donald Young that the 28 year-old Yonkers native wasn’t in top form. He looked sluggish in his second round win too in which his opponent retired due to a balky back. Though Fish had been playing the best tennis of his career serving tremendously and moving very well banging that forehand, Blake appeared to be suffering from a Beijing hangover. No matter what he said not wanting to take away Fish’s biggest moment, he looked like a beaten man from all the travel. I actually picked Fish in the match based on what I’d seen but came away disappointed that Blake didn’t at least push him a fourth set cause who knows…

-Ana Ivanovic’s early ouster wasn’t surprising either. Especially considering she pulled out of the Olympics with a bad thumb and was lucky to even win her first round match. The good looking Serb with the nice game hasn’t had a strong finish to the season and definitely wasn’t worthy of her top ranking which will likely go to another confusing countrywoman Jelena Jankovic, who has needed three sets a couple of times already in what’s a routine draw. Without the injured Maria Sharapova, the women’s draw has been painfully lacking with both Williams sisters cruising through their first four rounds setting up an untimely quarterfinal match-up. What ashame! Perhaps our Open pick Russian Dinara Safina can push the winner.

-The one bright spot has been the steady play of Russian Elena Dementieva. The fifth seed and former runner-up is brimming with confidence off the highlight of her career taking Olympic gold in Beijing. She’s been playing extremely well and shouldn’t have too much trouble with Patty Schnyder later today reaching the semis. This could just be her breakthrough major.

-It wasn’t too surprising that young American Sam Querrey pushed top ranked Rafael Nadal four sets forcing the red hot Spaniard to really earn his second Open quarterfinal berth. Thing is the feisty Nadal came through coming up with the kind of big shots you expect from the strongest player on the ATP Tour. He can get to so many balls and when the chips are down when things get tight as they did in that one service game, his serve has improved to the point where he can step it up when he needs it most. As for the big serving Querrey, he’s a rising star who should make more noise in the future which is good for American tennis.

-Andy Murray sure looked spectacular taking apart No.10 seed Stanislav Wawrinka. So far, so good for the very talented rising Scot whose fitness is at an all-time best along with his tremendous belief. Now we’ll see how he fares against sizzling 19 year-old Argentine Juan Martin del Potro, who reeled off his 23rd straight eliminating Japanese wildcard Kei Nishikori. Murray will be the favorite in that one. The pressure’s on.

-Andy Roddick has to be thinking he has a good shot here if he takes care of business against dangerous slugger Fernando Gonzalez tonight. Especially given how much Novak Djokovic struggled with Marin Cilic. The Serb who we took to win this major looked very sluggish in that one and was fortunate his lesser experienced opponent tightened up late in the second set.

-Gilles Muller’s run has been a great story. The former 2005 upset specialist of Roddick had been playing satellite events just to get back in the mix overcoming so much. He’s had two great two set comebacks already and now takes on Russian Nikolay Davydenko for a spot in the quarters today. We’ll see if he’s got anything left in the tank against one of the most consistent and overlooked top players.

-Remember when Amelie Mauresmo won the Australian and Wimbledon a couple of years back rising to No.1? What the heck happened?!?!?!?!?!

-Where have you gone Justine Henin and Kim Clijsters when the women’s game is lacking and needs you? That Belgian tandem sure is missed.

-We’re going to find out a lot about how much game and where Roger Federer’s head is at this week. It should also give us a better indicator if the 27 year-old Swiss No.2 ranked player has what it takes to bounce back and win those two slams to match Pete Sampras. Assuming he gets by Igor Andreev today, he’ll probably have to go through Davydenko and either Roddick or Djokovic just to reach the final.

-As well as Fish is playing, it’s awfully hard to see him upsetting Nadal who should be able to hurt him with his return game. Fish will need to play the match of his life to pull it off.

-I’ve always enjoyed USA’s coverage which is in its 20th and final year covering the Open but do they have to stay so long bsing with every freaking Entourage star while the match is going on? Just saying.

When his opponent’s final groundstroke hit the net, Andy Roddick let out an enthusiastic, ‘Yeah’ looking over to his box which included eye candy fiance swimsuit model Brooklyn Decker along with “temporary coach” and David Cup captain Patrick McEnroe along with older brother John Roddick before celebrating his more routine third round victory over 31st seeded Italian Andreas Seppi, 6-2, 7-5, 7-6 (4) Sunday at a packed Ashe Stadium in Flushing Meadows.

“This is probably the most intimidating court in the world if you’ve never been on it before,” the just turned 26 year-old No.8 seeded American told CBS court reporter Mary Joe Fernandez afterwards to delightful laughter from the New York crowd which enjoyed what they saw.

There stood the former 2003 U.S. Open champion five years removed from his greatest career achievement where he won his only major by grinding from a couple of sets down fighting off match point against David Nalbandian in the semis before using that powerful serve to crush Juan Carlos Ferrero in a lopsided final. It’s the picture which followed after that last ace down the tee where you see a younger Roddick looking like a kid in a candy store with that ear to ear grin as if to say, ‘I really did it.’

That he did and at the time was ranked No.1 in the world and deservedly so. A lot has happened since then for the man who’s still America’s brightest hope when it comes to winning the final tennis grand slam of the year. It wasn’t long ago when he was the biggest threat on grass to Roger Federer pushing him a close fought four sets a few years ago before losing despite one of the best matches of his career. There was also that little run he had with former coach Jimmy Connors a couple of years prior when he went all the way to the final and once again made Federer sweat before falling in four.

Fast forward to the present and now Roddick’s fighting to get back in the top five as the men’s field gets even more competitive. A couple of nights prior, he had to overcome a young up and comer in Latvian Ernests Gulbis who hit the ball even bigger frequently pushing Roddick around for a ridiculous 79 winners- 37 more than the kid from Austin, Texas whose passion always comes out when he plays New York City.

Though the other birthday boy who turned 20 while Andy became 26 had him down a set and 5-3 a couple of points away from deep trouble, Gulbis never could finish off the determined American who used his guile and experience to stay in there. No way could his opponent who entered with a career mark two under .500 keep up this frenetic pace.

Finally, nerves crept in and he began misfiring from the baseline losing concentration while Roddick locked in grabbing the last four games of the set to square the match reeling off seven straight en route to a double break third set turning the tide. He’d pull out a tighter fourth set getting that final break to advance past a tough second round opponent.

“Tonight was probably one of those ones I won on effort,” he would later say Friday night after playing smart efficient tennis committing just 21 unforced errors to his opponent’s 60.

“He was definitely outplaying me for the first two sets. I felt like a little kid out here playing against him,” Roddick quipped before adding:

“And then the clock struck 12, and I started playing, well, as a 26-year-old.”

Laughter ensued from the remainder of a supportive crowd which stayed until 1:30 in the morning showing him the kind of love we’ve seen with our favorite New York sports stars with frequent chants of, “Let’s Go An—dy” and “An—dy Ro—dd—ick.”

Roddick’s always worn his emotion on his sleeves. When things don’t go well as they weren’t for nearly two sets, he’ll do something like smash his racket into smithereens before regaining his composure urged on by legions of supporters who he properly credited for keeping him focused.

“You guys kept me in there when I was losing my head,” a heartfelt Roddick told them to loud cheers. When asked by USA’s Michael Barkan if he had what it took to go all the way, he indicated:

“If this crowd comes with me the whole way, who knows?”

No question Roddick is fully aware how much the overwhelming support of the New York crowd can help him in his quest to win a second U.S. Open. It’s certainly been a challenging year which has seen him ousted in the third round down under, pulling out of the French due to a shoulder injury before a disappointing second round exit at another big slam he was once considered a large threat in Wimbledon.

Unlike many, he opted to skip the Beijing Summer Olympics and play a couple of tuneups which didn’t produce any titles falling to rising Argentine Juan Martin Del Potro in an LA final while losing in the quarters to 93rd ranked Serb Viktor Troicki at the nation’s capital a couple of weeks ago.

Perhaps the extra week off allowed him to enter the Open fresher than he’s been. Now 26, health is a concern for Roddick who still is one of the hardest hitters on the ATP Tour. For that reason alone, you can’t discount the Omaha, Nebraska native. Especially on the hard courts at Ashe.

Even if all the focus is on new No.1 Rafael Nadal, slumping four-time rating champ Roger Federer and even rising No.3 Serb Novak Djokovic, Roddick still has a puncher’s chance and might just get to go through two of the three with a potential quarter showdown against Djokovic and Federer as a projected semifinalist.

For now, Roddick awaits the winner between No.11 seeded Chilean Fernando Gonzalez and lefty Finn Jarkko Nieminen. If he continues to play steady and hit the ball firm as he indicated earlier today, he’s better than either and should setup that intriguing quarterfinal match against Djokovic provided he gets past dangerous 19 year-old Croat Marin Cilic tonight.

Despite winning in straight sets to make the Round of 16, Roddick is fully aware that he must step it up even more if he’s to make that serious push for a second grand slam under the bright lights.

This is his season. It’s the biggest reason he pushes on.

Copyright Getty Images

It’s a day later and we’re still in shock over what we saw in the longest Wimbledon men’s final at the All England Club. How could it have been any better between the new King of grass Rafael Nadal, who became the first Spaniard to win the men’s title since Manolo Santana (in attendance) against the five-time rating champion Roger Federer, who was bidding to make it six straight surpassing legend Bjorn Borg (also present) and first to do so since 1886?

The memorable five-setter which Nadal won over Federer 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 6-7 (8), 9-7 concluding at 9:15 British time arguably is the greatest match ever played in the rich tournament’s history invoking memories of Borg’s five-set win over John McEnroe which featured a crazy fourth set tiebreaker won by Mac 18-16 before the Swede cameback to prevail in five hitting that backhand crosscourt pass and kneeling on his knees for his fifth and final title in 1980.

So, was yesterday’s match really better? Tough to say. I never saw the one played 28 years prior but have seen such a great final as unlikely winner Goran Ivanisevic finally winning that elusive Wimbledon over Patrick Rafter in another dramatic five-setter which needed sudden death to decide and featured momentous rain delays. That was pretty great itself. However, this one pitted the two best players against each other slugging the ball like never before seen with the kind of defense to offense transition which is what separates them from everyone else in their sport.

How many times did Federer hit a winner only to see a hustling Nadal lunge over to get the ball back and keep the rally going making the crowd murmur at what they were seeing? Federer also had some great gets as well but it’s rare that the brilliant 26 year-old Swiss 12-time slam winner is outdone on the baseline. Especially on grass where he’d taken 41 in a row at Wimbledon and an unheard of 65 straight on his best surface. It’s a tribute to how great his opponent was yesterday making the necessary adjustments to finally conquer Roger in their third consecutive final.

As Federer sarcastically noted during the trophy ceremony presentation, he “tried everything but went up against the worst possible opponent.”

Anyone else and it would’ve been a record six for a player many consider to be the greatest to ever play the sport. As runner-up also noted, Nadal was “a very worthy champion.”

Sometimes, that’s how it is in a sport which sees changes such as this take place. Was it really the changing of the guard? Yes because no matter what the rankings say which still have Federer some 500+ points ahead of his closest predecessor in the standings, Nadal has won both the French and Wimbledon. He’s surged ahead for now. So while he doesn’t have the No.1 ranking, many will now call him the best player in the world.

Does Rafa still have an awful lot to prove with the hardcourt season around the corner where he’s never fared very well? Absolutely. A quarterfinal or Round of 16 showing at the final grand slam of the year in Flushing at the U.S. Open won’t be enough if he wants to truly be considered the best. It’s time for the kid from Manacor, Mallorca to take that next giant step. He proved he could go deep on a hard court in Melbourne reaching the semis before getting blitzed off the court by Frenchman Jo-Wilfried Tsonga.

We’ll find out this summer if Nadal’s finally up to the challenge now that he’s conquered Federer on grass. The best storyline is that the still top ranked player for more than four years is the best player on hard courts with Novak Djokovic a close second and even Andy Roddick still in the mix with James Blake’s name and game resurfacing. Where does Rafa rate? That’ll be determined over the next couple of months during the U.S. Open Series.

We’ll have a better idea in September.

As for Federer, he’s still without a slam this season and hasn’t gone a whole year without at least one since 2002 before all the Wimbledons when he bowed out to then qualifier Mario Ancic. Amazing that you have to go back that far. In fact, he’s always won at least half the majors since 2004. That is impossible now as the best he can do is five-peating in New York which would be quite a feat in itself.

How does he respond to losing in back-to-back finals including on the Centre Court which he had ruled to his biggest rival? There should be plenty of motivation for a proud champion who still wants to accomplish so much. He still trails Pete Sampras by two for the most slams and has hinted to the press, that he plans to stick around another six to 10 years meaning he wouldn’t be going anywhere anytime soon.

However, the pursuit of history has become much more difficult with Nadal continuing to improve and a cocky Djokovic fearless despite winning his first major last January in Australia. The challenges promise to get tougher for Federer as his No.1 ranking is now in jeopardy.

Does he bounceback and finish the season strong by winning a couple of Open Series events plus a fifth consecutive Open or does he let such a heartbreaking defeat- one which he called “my toughest ever” affect him negatively? Federer’s always been so strong mentally. That will get severely tested.

It all makes for an intriguing rest of the summer where even non-tennis fans are still talking about how great Sunday was.

It only promises to get even more interesting.

There aren’t enough words to describe how unbelievable Sunday’s Wimbledon men’s final was between Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal. That it featured three rain delays and more twists and turns which explained a tournament record four hours and 48 minute marathon featuring some of the most spectacular tennis ever played at the All England Club was a credit to just how special both the No.1 ranked 26 year-old Swiss and the No.2 ranked 22 year-old Spaniard played.

In over two decades of watching tennis, this just might’ve been the best match ever seen. Particularly with so much history on the line. Nadal dethroned the five-time defending champion ending one of the greatest runs ever. Federer’s 65-match win streak on grass finally ended as did his run of 41 in a row at tennis’ most prestigious grand slam.

It looked like Rafa would make it easy on himself by stunning Federer by coming back from 1-4 down in the second set breaking him twice in taking the final five games to go up a commanding two sets. But the proud champion who’s won 12 slam titles didn’t go down easily using the first rain delay to rally back fighting off triple break point to hold before taking a third set tiebreaker on a perfect ace out wide to make it interesting.

It would only get better from there as both players who had been slugging the ball as hard as possible making each other come up with ridiculous shots on the run while playing great defense elevated their elite games even more. Neither faced a break point in set four which was destined for another breaker.

This one was unpredictable as each server had problems winning points. When Nadal jumped out to a two mini-break 5-2 lead, the end seemed in sight with a changing of the guard about to happen. But not so fast as Federer got a rare double fault and then took the next point with a huge forehand to get back on serve. He would save one championship point and then be forced to save yet another in heroic fashion. Trailing 8-7 with Rafa serving, he came up with a very tough backhand pass down the line to ward off defeat. After going up 9-8, a service winner gave a pumped up Roger the set leveling the match before an even more excited crowd which loved every minute.

The quality was that special. Even when Federer dropped the first two sets by identical 6-4 scores, it wasn’t because he was playing poorly but rather spoke to how well Nadal was playing. The kid from Mayorga who’s won four French Opens in a row including three straight versus the world No.1 was much better on the bigger points. If there was a difference in the match, Federer only converted on one of 13 break chances while his younger opponent broke three more times in the same amount of chances (4/13).

Still, Federer had drawn even showing the heart of a proud champion who wouldn’t hand over his crown that easily and looked determined enough to complete a remarkable two set comeback against his equal. There was even more drama as the rain came again delaying play another half hour at two apiece in the final set at Deuce on Roger’s serve making one ponder if they’d be able to finish the match before darkness.

They would get back out there and Nadal again seemed on the verge of cementing that break which would mean what could’ve happened last year had he converted one of those couple of break points early in that fifth set. But Federer again valiantly fought them off to keep it on serve. Would he pull this off and give tennis history by becoming the first player to win six straight in over a century since 1886?

Nadal never blinked serving harder and at a higher percentage. When a Federer forehand went just long in the 15th game finally giving the hungry two-time runner-up the break. The question was could he serve out the championship? He setup a third championship point but yet again was thwarted by a great backhand slice return just out of his reach making it Deuce.

A big serve gave him a fourth opportunity to cash in and this time, Federer couldn’t pull another rabit out of his magic bag of tricks netting a forehand to give Nadal the thrilling victory for his first ever Wimbledon becoming the first Spanish male player to win there since 1966. He immediately slid to the ground by the baseline before getting back up to receive congrats from a gracious champ who really took the defeat tough. Who could blame him? He worked so hard to get back in it and was so close.

The match which started half an hour late due to the first batch of rain ended at 9:15 London time with little light left making for a fantastic scene. Watching a jubilant Nadal climb up and go across to greet his family in the player’s box was a special treat. His Dad had been so emotional throughout. It really was great stuff and theater at its best.

Former three-time Wimbledon champion and current NBC tennis analyst John McEnroe who once went five in another epic some 28 years prior before losing to Bjorn Borg termed it:

 ”the best match I’ve ever seen.”

Pretty strong stuff coming from one of the best American players and someone I always admired. I have so much more to say and will do so later today because it truly was special.

Both players deserve congratulations for putting on a show worthy of an encore which is sure to run on ESPN Classic. This was tennis at its finest.

Congrats also goes out to the Williams sisters, who won the women’s doubles crown after older sis Venus got the better of Serena to repeat and win her fifth Wimbledon. Just remarkable. And it was a very good match too unlike past all-Williams finals with each sister slugging it out and hitting tons of winners and not many errors.

Great to see.

We’ll have much more on Nadal becoming the first player to win the French and Wimbledon in the same year since Borg (1980) later on. Plus analysis on Federer.

They’ll do it again. No.1 vs No.2 for all the marbles at a third consecutive Wimbledon at the All England Club on Centre Court tomorrow.

Some more history will be on the line when five-time defending champion Roger Federer tries to become the first tennis player to win six in a row for the first time in over a century (1886) with his biggest nemesis standing in the path in four-time French Open conquerer Rafael Nadal, who blitzed the Swiss world No.1 holding him to four games leading many to make the younger Spaniard the favorite to win a fifth major on grass following up an impressive run at Queen’s Club.

The 22 year-old Nadal will once again be attempting to become the first male tennis player to win both the French and Wimbledon in the same year since tennis legend Bjorn Borg accomplished the feat some 28 years ago. In last year’s rematch, he came awfully close to dethroning Federer losing in an ultra competitive five sets with Borg returning to the place he once owned for the first time since he played to present the trophy to the Swiss Maestro.

Having battled mono early in the season when eventual Australian Open champ Novak Djokovic straight setted him in the semis, Federer suffered some tough defeats including to Andy Roddick in a close three sets down in Miami. But he even lost to Mardy Fish making people wonder if his brilliant level was dropping off leaving the door open for either Nadal or Djokovic to overtake him for the ATP’s top spot.
Though he made the final at Roland Garros, once again he was thwarted in an effort to become the sixth male tennis player to complete a career grand slam by a dominant Nadal, who made it look so easy that many pondered if a changing of the guard was on the horizon. Given how well Federer’s responded in not dropping a set while losing serve only twice and not since the third round, we won’t know until Sunday if the speedy and powerful Spaniard is ready to overtake him for the world’s top spot.

While Federer was taking care of business making Mario Ancic look normal and even frustrating Marat Safin to the point where the unpredictable 28 year-old Russian broke his racket and made some of the funniest challenges (they weren’t even close), Nadal was working his way through the field dropping just a set back in Round 2 to big server Ernest Gulbis while making quick work of tough foes such as Russian Mikhail Youzhny and Scot Andy Murray en route to a third straight final.

He sounds ready for the challenge but so does Federer. Whoever prevails, they’ll earn it. Get ready for some history.

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Roger Federer should get his first challenge today when he faces an opponent from the past. The Swiss world No.1 who’s captured five Wimbledons in succession will take on the last player to defeat him at the All England Club on grass. That’s hard slugging Croatian Mario Ancic, who’s had a successful return back from sickness making the quarters.

The 24 year-old former top 10 player’s latest big win came at the expense of No.22 seeded Spaniard Fernando Verdasco rallying from two sets back to pull out a lengthy five setter prevailing 13-11 in the final set on Court 11 Monday.

Now he’ll step up in competition and try to duplicate his 2002 second round shocker when he beat Federer as an unknown 18 year-old qualifier. Since then, all the popular 26 year-old Swede has done is reel off a record 63 straight on grass. He’s continued to look like the player to beat having swept through former ‘02 Wimbledon champ Lleyton Hewitt 7-6 (7), 6-4, 6-2. He still hasn’t dropped a set and looks very focused on making history by becoming the first player in more than a century to win six in a row.

Still, given how Ancic is playing, it promises to be an intriguing match. His all court game and big serve could make things interesting. A couple of tiebreakers aren’t out of the realm of possibility. It will be his biggest match since losing to American Andy Roddick in a very competitive five set semi a few years ago on this very same surface in London.

We’ll see if he can threaten the greatest grasscourt male player later today.

Also in action will be British (Scottish) hope Andy Murray, who will look to continue a great run when he takes on No.2 ranked Spaniard Rafael Nadal. Nadal has looked very sharp and set on making a third consecutive finals appearance having dropped just one set. Murray valiantly fought back from two sets down and a break to comeback and beat last year’s French semifinalist No.8 seeded Richard Gasquet. The lanky Scot served extremely well and returned superbly also tracking down some balls which defied logic like his around the net backhand winner to capture the third set electrifying a pro-Murray crowd.

It’s no secret who a vast majority of the supporters will be pulling for.

Also in action will be 28 year-old veteran Russian Marat Safin as he looks to make his first ever Wimbledon semi against Spanish big lefty serve and volleyer Feliciano Lopez who fought off three match points against Marcos Baghdatis in the fifth set before coming back to advance. It promises to be a very good match with five sets not out of the question.

The other quarter features the biggest surprises in vets Rainer Schuettler and Arnaud Clement. The winner will make the semis and draw either Nadal or Murray while the Safin-Lopez winner gets either Federer or Ancic.

Meanwhile, the Williams sisters moved one step closer to facing each other by both prevailing in their quarterfinals in straight sets. Defending champion Venus will take on the highest seeded player remaining in No.5 Russian Elena Dementieva while Serena faces surprise wildcard Jie Zheng from China.

The women get a day off. 

It should be a fun day of tennis.

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Their names both start with ‘M’ and it would be easy to point out how physically gifted each player was entering this year’s Wimbledon. What wasn’t known about either Croatian Mario Ancic or Russian veteran Marat Safin was how they would perform.

That’s been the case for the two-time former slam winner Safin for quite a while. Where you just never know what kind of game he’ll bring to the court. As he’s proven this first week at the All England Club, the always entertaining Marat has made plenty of noise thus far eliminating third seeded Serbian Novak Djokovic from the second round in straight sets.

So, how would he follow up such a big win? That answer was provided late in the day as he completed a hard fought four set win over Italian Andreas Seppi 7-6 (5), 3-6, 7-6 (3), 6-4 to advance to the second week of a major for the first time in nearly two years. In fact, it was only the second time in the moody Russian’s career that he’s advanced to Week Two of Wimbledon with the previous one coming seven years ago when he got to the quarters on his least favorite surface.

Despite a pesky opponent who made him work for every point, the 28 year-old still had enough big shots to take the third and fourth sets after they split the opening two. The third set saw the server in control with a second tiebreaker needed to decide matters. In the opening one, Safin stepped up when he needed to for a mini break and then a service winner to close it out.

This time, he got off to a quick 4-0 two mini break lead before Seppi closed within 4-3. But the former 2005 Australian Open winner made a couple of tough shots and closed out the breaker by taking the last three points for a one set lead.

After trading early breaks in the fourth, Safin held and then broke again. It looked like he would not be threatened on serve. With a chance to close it out, he faced three break points. When he needed it most, his bigger ground strokes came through as did an underrated net game (26/35, 74 percent) to get him out of trouble and to the finish line in spite of darkness which he afterwards complained about despite pulling through.

“At the end of the match it was pretty tough because we both, I think, couldn’t see the ball anymore,” a relieved Safin expressed during a postmatch interview of the third round match which concluded at 9:17 PM London time. “I was a little bit worried … at the score 3-2, I just couldn’t see.”

In a competitive match where not much separated the two players, he saw well enough to play the bigger points better to advance to a Round of 16 meeting with 13th seeded Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka.

While one happy comeback story unfolded, yet another took place with Ancic, who was given a wildcard into the tournament. The 24 year-old talented Croat had dealt with a rash of injuries and sickness over the last year which dropped his ranking but finally appears fully recovered ready to make a dent and possibly fulfill expectations.

The last man who defeated Roger Federer on grass at this very event six years prior continued his resurgence with an impressive four set triumph over gritty fifth seeded Spaniard David Ferrer 6-4, 6-4, 6-7 (5), 7-6 (3). Playing an all court game which included his huge serve which produced 18 more aces (Ancic-23, Ferrer-5) than his opponent, he jumped out to a two set lead against one of the ATP’s most consistent performers.

If Ancic thought it was going to be easy, forget it because the word quit isn’t in Ferrer’s vocabulary. Instead of wilting despite not being able to break his tough opponent’s serve (0-for-6 on break points), the 26 year-old baseliner upped his game a couple of notches to force a third set breaker.

In it, when push came to shove, the determined Ferrer made it happen by hitting penetrating groundstrokes including a huge forehand inside the baseline which drew an Ancic error for 6-5 setting up set point. A big first serve out wide wasn’t returned giving the emotional Spaniard the set and momentum.

Both players continued to play despite dark conditions past 9 as was the case in the other match. They each held serve throughout an ultra competitive fourth set which featured some of the best grasscourt tennis you’ll see. With each player very fit, there were plenty of crowd pleasing extended rallies along with winners and most notably, not many errors. They combined for just 45 unforced which is a very good number for the kind of high calibre tennis they played.

In the breaker, it was Ancic’s bigger serve and game which made the difference. He imposed his will and made the shots when he needed to including a very cool backhand stab volley winner on a net cord from a difficult position. It was that kind of play which allowed him to avoid having to go five against one of the game’s most fit players.

When it ended, an emotional Ancic kissed the grass at Centre Court.

“It was an incredible match from first point to last point. The crowd was going crazy,” he later admitted. “It was just a couple of points that went to my side. I was looking forward to playing on Centre Court. That was my dream. I’m so, so happy I’m back again.”

He’ll next get 22nd seeded Spaniard Fernando Verdasco. If Ancic wins, there’s a very good chance he’ll meet Federer in the quarters. The rating five-time champ made quick work of Frenchman Marc Gicquel posting a 6-3, 6-3, 6-1 win to setup a Round of 16 Monday date with former 2002 winner Lleyton Hewitt, who has been rejuvenated under the world No.1’s former part/time coach Tony Roche. The Aussie eliminated Italy’s Simone Bolelli 6-1, 6-1, 7-6 (2) and was very much looking forward to another meeting with Federer despite little recent success. He’s dropped the last 11 with the last win dating back to the 2004 Australian Open.

Ivanovic bows out: In a week which saw so many big names fall by the wayside including women’s No.1 Ana Ivanovic yesterday to comebacking China’s Jie Zheng 6-1, 6-4, it was refreshing to have a couple of good stories such as Ancic and Safin making the second week intriguing in spite of some of the game’s biggest stars who won’t have a shot at winning the trophy.

For the 20 year-old Ivanovic who captured her first major earlier this month at Roland Garros winning the French, she couldn’t avoid the upset bug like in the second round when she used a net cord to save match point against veteran Frenchwoman Nathalie Dechy before rallying to pull out an epic three set marathon which went more than three hours. Perhaps it took something out of the Serb.

“It was a very emotional last couple of weeks for me and it took a bit of a toll,” a disappointed Ivanovic later said. “I didn’t have great preparation.”