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WIMBLEDON, DAY 12, MEN'S SEMIFINALS PREVIEWS
Big W men's final four should be classics
By Matthew Cronin
tennisreporters.net
FROM WIMBLEDON – New Grand Slam champ, please, stand up.
Whether it's the fast-talking Andy Roddick, the artful Roger Federer, the magical Sebastien Grosjean or explosive Mark Philippoussis, let the last two bends on their roads to the Wimbledon title be treacherous and exhilarating ones.
The Wimbledon fortnight is now down to its last three days and for the first time since the men's boycott in 1973, no former champion is left in the draw. The four men left are all under the age of 27 and two of them – Roddick and Federer – are 21 and under, still somewhat wet-behind-the- ears competitors.
Roddick and Philippoussis can break your ear drums with their serves, while Federer and Grosjean can make you weep in appreciation of the beautiful symphony of their shots. One is American, one is Swiss, one is French and one is Australian.
The winner of the Roddick and Federer contest will be considered the odds-on favorite to win the crown, but after watching Philippoussis gut his way through a tremendous five-setter over Alexander Popp and Grosjean quick-fist his way past a blurry-eyed Tim Henman, any of the four have a decent chance at winning the title. For tennis fans, the prospect of seeing one of these extremely talented but very unproved men at the majors win Wimbledon is mouthwatering.
"Its intriguing and exciting," Roddick said.
"All of us think we can win it," Grosjean said.
RODDICK/FEDERER
Fred Mullane/Camerawork USA, Inc. |
Thinking and doing are two entirely different affairs. The American Roddick prefers not to think at all and when you can crack a 149-mph heater and averaged 123-mph on your serves in your straight-set route Swedish veteran Jonas Bjorkman, why not just see it and slug it? Roddick won 10 straight matches, dating back to his title run in Queens, and his serve, groundstrokes and returns are all clicking. Dumb and dumber is making him play better and better(er).
"I'm not trying to think too much," the fifth-seed Roddick said. "I'm just trying to let it happen. I'm not going over think myself. If things are going good, they're going good."
Some credit must be given to his new coach, Brad Gilbert, but some must also go to Roddick himself, who has been coolly cutting down his foes like an icebreaker during a spring thaw.
He's the London's bookies favorite, but he'll be in for a death struggle against No. 4 Federer, who he has never beaten in three attempts. Federer has more variety to his game than anyone left in the draw, it's just a matter of whether he can put it all together against a bomber like Roddick. The 21-year-old Swiss is also on a 10-match roll and not only doesn't fear Roddick's serve, but seems to enjoy returning it.
"I'm not worried about his serving because if he serves [well], he serves [well]," Federer said. "I want to beat them differently. I don't believe I'm gonna get 200 aces. I've managed to return his serve in the past, so I guess I can do that the same now. I'm not worried. What should I be worried about? Getting killed out there? No. Serves don't kill you."
When told of Federer's comments and asked whether he would change his serving plans, Roddick smiled sinisterly. "We'll see," he said.
The match between the American with the pop star girlfriend (Mandy Moore) and Swiss with the model-esque tennis player girlfriend (Miroslava Vavrinec) is the contest everyone's been pointing to since the draw was first released. With the depth of men's tennis these days. It's rare to have such a marquee matchup realized.
"It a match that everybody's been waiting for, myself as well," Federer said. Roddick is also fired up.
"Were both on rolls," said Roddick, who called Federer the best player not to have won a Grand Slam. "Both of us have an air of confidence right now and it should be a good one."
Philippoussis/Grosjean
Fred Mullane/Camerawork USA, Inc. |
No. 13 Grosjean and the unseeded Philippoussis have split their four contests, but have never played on a super quick surface like grass. The Aussie is trying to prove that he can actually translate his talent into a win at a major, while Grosjean is attempting to show that modern French players are not just colorful performers who choke when the going gets tough.
The Scud has the edge in the serving and power department, while the Skateboard Kid is quicker and returns much better. Grosjean showed against Henman that just because he's 5-foot-9, it doesn't mean that he can't serve and volley, while Philippoussis showed against Popp in his 8-6 in the fifth set victory that he has guts and hunger again. Philippoussis made it to the US Open final back in 1998 and Grosjean is in his third Grand Slam semifinal, having reached the semis at the '01 Australian Open and '01 Roland Garros.
"I'll be nervous, but the good thing is that with him being seeded where he is, maybe some people expect him to win," Philippoussis said. "I like being in that position."
Grosjean will try to chop the 6-foot-4-inch man down.
"I'm going to take every chance I have and make him play as many balls as I can," he said. " I have a chance, but I have to focus."
On Friday, fans will be looking
at two semifinals that given their contrast of styles, should be the two most exciting of any Grand Slam this year. For the sake of the game, let's hope that all the competitors are focused. If they are, you can pencil in two Wimbledon classics into the history books.
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