Next Up: Nadal

Andy Roddick continues the defense of his US Open title as he faces Rafael Nadal in the 2nd round men’s singles match at Arthur Ashe Stadium on Friday. Andy is excited about his chances, but also cautious and focused on the job he needs to do. Andy and Rafi will kick off the long weekend and provide the spectators with an exciting match. Following is a brief analysis of the match-up:

A big, booming serve followed by a big forehand is Andy’s staple diet. It has also become the classic play in men’s tennis today. Andy has shown consistent improvement in his backhand, volley and return of serve but his big weapon still continues to be his serve. He will aim to intimidate Nadal by showering him with body serves all night. He will also try to pin Nadal to the baseline so he can keep the points short and get easy winners with the hard, heavy-hitting style. The strategy will bring in some cheap points but Nadal is not to be underestimated…

After reaching the 3rd round of two Masters Series events and Wimbledon in 2003, Nadal finished the year in the top-50 – a remarkable feat for a 17-year old! He continues to work on his game and has shown great promise this year. Nadal is one of only four men to beat world number one Roger Federer this year (TMS Miami). He also scored big wins over good players like Goran Ivanisevic, Carlos Moya and Jiri Novak. He possesses a big serve, a big forehand and excellent flexibility. He plays left-handed, which is an asset when playing against right-handed players. He is known to be quick and can volley very well. In short, he is the complete package and in addition, possesses the maturity and patience to score a big win.

Andy has had a solid year winning 4 ATP titles, while Nadal became the youngest player since Lleyton Hewitt to win an ATP title when he won his first career singles ATP title at Sopot. The two have never played at an ATP or Grand Slam event before, but this match-up is destined to produce fireworks. Here’s hoping both men are on their game and give us a terrific match.

Go Andy!

Material for this article was obtained from atptennis.com and usopen.org

You can contact Swar at swar@andyroddick.com