Madrid: Roddick Into Round Three

Stepping onto the court dressed in all black and a backwards white Lacoste hat, Andy and Sebastian Grosjean quickly warmed up to get the match under way. Andy seemed to “click” a bit sooner than Grosjean to claim the first set by earning the only break in the match, and kept the pressure on in the second to win 6-4, 7-6(3).

In the first set, Andy let the Frenchman know that he was here to win by rocketing serves and forehands all over the court as well as placing some feather-light drop shots right over the net. Even though Andy double-faulted on his first service point and experienced a bit of frustration in his not-as-on-target shots, he quickly refocused and kept his eye on the ball to earn the match’s solo break at 4-3. Andy aced his way to hold the lead at 5-3, and closed out the set 6-4.

Grosjean found his nitch and was firing away in the second set, though unforced errors were still coming off his racquet more than he liked. This allowed Andy to hold serve and keep the pressure on Grosjean’s offense throughout the set. Andy transitioned well from offense to defense, baseline play to volleying, and power to finesse. Even though the games went to deuce several times, neither play could convert and they found themselves in a tie-break. Andy kept firing his forehand and coming into the net with much success, but Grosjean gave him a run for this third round ticket with a few unreachable drop shots. With two powerful winners and one last ace, Andy sealed the deal and claimed the match, 7-6(3).

Andy will be resting and relaxing now as he seemed to be a little tight on court today to be ready to face either Berdych(11) or Calleri. Stay tuned to AR.com for a match preview and more from Madrid. Vaya Andy!