Roddick Off Colour But On Song

If Andy Roddick has felt slightly off-colour at Roland Garros in recent years, a pair of first-round defeats have been the cause, rather than the effect. This time, Roddick was struck by a stomach virus before his opening match against Todd Martin, but his title prospects emerged in reasonably good health.

Roddick fell ill on the eve of his bid to avoid what the second seed jokingly referred to as “the triple crown” of French Open losses, was unable to keep down any food and required a drip before Monday’s match.

“It makes me feel pretty bad that I can”t beat a guy who’s throwing up,” said Martin, whose other regret was a linecall misunderstanding that led to an uncharacteristic post-match exchange, repeated in the locker room.

Martin believed, erroneously, that Roddick had questioned his right to query a call, but discovered later that his opponent’s issue was with the umpire, for Roddick was unaware of the rules governing objections during points. “I made a royal you-know-what out of myself,” the usually genial Martin admitted after his straight-sets loss. “Unfortunately, there’s a possibility that could reflect poorly on Andy, and that’s my fault.”