Star-Spangled Quarterfinal

“We haven’t played in a major, but we played in the finals of a Masters Series event, which is pretty big,” Andy previewed his all American quarterfinal against friend Mardy Fish. “You know, I think it’s always a little bit weird when we play each other just ‘cause of our history. In high school, he was four steps from the door of my room, the door of his room. It’s always a little weird.”

From growing up in the juniors together, to living together and playing on the same high school basketball team, their friendship may have deep roots, but Andy admits they both have their eye on the prize. “I think we’re both professional enough to know that when we get out there, we both want to win real bad.”

As Roddick is playing in his fourth Australian Open in quarterfinal in five years, this will be Fish’s debut quarterfinal match at a Grand Slam. After a trying year following wrist surgery, Mardy had prevailed over 4th seed Ivan Ljubicic, Nicolas Mahut, Wayne Arthurs and 16th seed David Ferrer to reach the coveted spot in the elite eight.

The two have played five times before. Andy leads with four victories, their most recent meeting was last year in Memphis. Mardy looks forward to taking their friendly rivalry to the big stage. “Guys were asking me in there who would I rather play. I think I’d rather play Andy. I think just growing up, we’ve kind of dreamed about, talked about playing in the quarterfinals, finals, whatever, of Slams, big tournaments and stuff. That would be pretty special.” Mardy shares Andy’s prediction that the two will ‘bring it’ regardless of their kinship. “He knows I want to win just as bad as he wants to win. Whatever is said or whatever happens on the tennis court, we’ll always be friends. We’ll always leave it on the court.”

Tuesday’s quarterfinal will certainly be another memory the two can share. Both players will be looking for guidance from their experienced coach’s. Jimmy’s influence on Andy since their partnership in July is apparent, and Mardy draws from the seasoned advice of former pro Todd Martin.

Andy Roddick vs Marty Fish (1/23/07)
3rd on Rod Laver Arena
Starts 11am Local (7pm EST Monday)
TV Coverage begins on ESPN2 at 9:00 PM EST

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