Roddick rocks Melzer
MELBOURNE, Australia – Andy Roddick served 22 aces and hit 41 winners – including a passing shot played between his legs – and beat Austria’s Jurgen Melzer 6-2, 6-2, 7-5 today to advance to the fourth round of the Australian Open.
The second-ranked Roddick had the crowd buzzing after starting his first service game with a pair of aces. He unleashed serves at up to 139 mph.
“I thought I moved really well. I got up two sets, the third one got a little tight, but I was able to get through,” said Roddick, who noted his serve is well short of his world record 155 mph. “I’m holding serve though; that’s the most important thing.”
In the third game, the 32nd-seeded Melzer drew Roddick into the net with a drop shot, then sent up a lob that landed just inside the line. Roddick raced back and flicked the ball back between his legs and down the line as Melzer barely moved.
He repeated the shot later in the match, but missed it the second time.
“I got greedy. The first one felt good, so I needed more,” he said.
Roddick was greedy with his serve too. He saved three break points in the fourth game, which went to deuce four times.
They were Melzer’s only looks at a break point.
Tim Henman hit a reflex volley behind his back, catching Nicolay Davydenko by surprise, to rival Roddick for the shot of the day.
But the ball Henman smashed into the stands in anger in the third set was his cleanest hit in a 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 third-round loss to the 26th-seeded Davydenko.
The seventh-seeded Henman was a semifinalist at the French and U.S. opens last year and a quarterfinalist at Wimbledon. But he seemed distracted, making 32 unforced errors and five double-faults.
“I feel totally gutted, really,” Henman said. “My expectations were obviously for a lot more.”
Davydenko hit 31 clean winners, mostly on his forehand, and broke Henman’s serve in the opening games of the first and third sets. He had never reached the second week of a Grand Slam tournament in 15 previous attempts.
Davydenko next faces 12th-seeded Guillermo Canas, a 6-1, 6-2, 6-2 winner over Radek Stepanek.
French Open finalist Guillermo Coria beat former No. 1 Juan Carlos Ferrero 6-3, 6-2, 6-1 and will play fellow Argentine David Nalbandian, seeded ninth, in the next round.
Nalbandian, a Wimbledon finalist in 2002 and quarterfinalist here the last two years, beat error-prone Fernando Gonzalez 6-7 (3), 7-5, 6-2, 6-3, converting a third of his 24 breakpoint chances.
Women’s French Open champion Anastasia Myskina joined Russia’s two other Grand Slam title holders in the fourth round when American Lisa Raymond withdrew from their match.
Raymond tore abdominal muscles in the first game of a second-round doubles match on Friday.
The 31-year-old American reached the quarterfinals at Melbourne Park last year, upsetting then No. 3-seeded Venus Williams in the third round.
“I’m extremely disappointed because I couldn’t have asked to play better in my first two matches,” said Raymond, who hopes to return for the Indian Wells tournament in California starting March 9.
Top-ranked Lindsay Davenport beat 15-year-old Czech qualifier Nicole Vaidisova 6-2, 6-4, setting up a fourth-round match against 13th-seeded Karolina Sprem, who ousted Elena Likhovtseva 6-4, 6-3.
No. 8 Venus Williams won the last nine games in a one-hour, 6-3, 6-0 rout of Anna Smashnova.
After holding at 3-3, Smashnova never had more than two points on her serve.
Tenth-seeded Alicia Molik closed a 6-3, 6-2 win over Tatiana Panova with an ace, and advances to face Venus Williams.
“Bring it on!” Molik told the crowd at Rod Laver Arena after reaching the fourth round and matching her best run at a major.
Fourth-ranked Maria Sharapova, the Wimbledon champion, and U.S. Open winner Svetlana Kuznetsova, seeded fifth, won their third-round matches Friday, advancing along with No. 7 Serena Williams and No. 2 Amelie Mauresmo.