THE tennisreporters.net NEWSLETTER: TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 18, NO. 57

Who's the best in 2003: Is Roddick the true No. 1 or Federer?
Bryan twins are doubles champs

By Matthew Cronin
tennisreporters.net

The accolades showered on Roger Federer after his brilliant week in Houston were worthy of a king. Not quite up to the holier-than-the-world praise that tournament director Jim McIngvale bestowed upon Andre Agassi after Roger ran through him 6-3, 6-0, 6-4 in the final ("One of the finest human beings I've ever met), but certainly befitting of a year-end No. 1.

"He's doing everything great," Agassi said. "He's a great mover, great striker of the ball off both sides. He's a factor from the back of the court, when he comes to the net. His serve is very effective. He knows the game real well, knows court position. As good as it gets out there."

Does that mean that Federer is as good as newly crowned No. 1 Andy Roddick? Yes and given his 6-1 match record against him, he may be better. But that doesn't mean that the Swiss is a more accomplished big match player, or had a better year than Roddick did when it really counted.

Sure, Federer handed Roddick his "SNL"-swelled head in the semis by completely outclassing him in the first-set tiebreak and then keenly reading his serve in the second set, but new Austin homeowner Roddick had a better record in the big tournaments.

Both men won a Slam, with Federer taking Wimbledon and Roddick the US Open. But Andy also reached the Aussie Open and Wimby semis, while Federer only reached the fourth round of the Aussie and US Open. They both were stunned in the first round of Roland Garros.

Roddick won two Masters Series titles (Canada and Cincy), while Federer won Houston. It could be argued that Federer had a more consistent year than Roddick at the Masters Series. He also won seven overall titles to six from Roddick and had a better match record (78-17 to 72-19), but Roddick's Slam performances simply push him over the top.

Who knows how the Swiss would have performed in Houston if he came into the final weekend with a shot at No. 1? Then the pressure would have really been on him, not the slow simmer that burned under him in attempting to grab J.C. Ferrero's No. 2 spot, which he easily handled.

FLAWLESS FEDERER
But take nothing away from the multi-talented Federer, whose devastating one-handed cross court backhand was as good as it's ever been in Houston. He's served wonderfully, especially his heater down the middle and his forehand was deep and consistent.

The Swiss became the fifth undefeated champion at the year-end event since 1986 when the tournament re-introduced the round robin format.

"I'm very happy how this whole year went, especially this tournament," he said. "What a great finish. I really overachieved everything I set for myself. Seven titles, four on different surfaces, my first Grand Slam, No. 2 in the world. It's really been an unbelievable year for me; I'm very happy. I really worked very hard this year. I'm very happy it paid off because you always have the ups and downs, but I really felt this season has been complete."

It's also worth as king whether if Roddick needed to beat Federer to grab the No. 1 spot if he would have stepped it up a level. It's difficult to bring out your best when you've already accomplished what you set out to do. Just ask Justine Henin-Hardenne whom found herself in an identical position in LA and also lost.

But as Andy says, Federer is hard to keep up with when he's moving well.

"Quickest? Maybe not," Roddick said. "As far as just gliding and maybe you're not thinking he's there and he just shows up and is just there, he's very fast. Especially for someone, he's probably 6'2" [actually 6'1"]. He's a pretty well-built guy. He's not Lleyton (Hewitt) or (Guillermo) Coria or (Rainer) Schuettler. It's pretty impressive. I think he's a very underrated athlete overall."

All the oohing and aahing over Federer's game from the ESPN crew (Cliff Drysdale, Mary Carillo and Pat McEnroe) obscured the fact that when it came time to deliver against David Nalbandian at the US Open, he couldn't pull it off. A win there and it's likely he's the year-end top dog. He'll have to prove to be a little more mentally tough next year if he wants the cherished spot. When push came to shove, Andy delivered when he had to. Even Federer thinks so.

"I think Andy deserves his No. 1 spot," Federer said. "I think he should walk away from here and feel the best. I would feel the same way if I would be No. 1 in the world. I'd maybe feel the best of this week, because I really have played unbelievable tennis. And I'll try to reach what he achieved this year, next year."

DAVIS CUP WIN COULD EASE FERRERO
Some quick takes on the other players: Ferrero still has to play the Davis Cup final, so his year isn't over, but what a terrible end to the season for the Spaniard, who came into Houston in the hunt for No. 1 and then couldn't even pull off one win? The result: zero points and a No. 3 finish. Only a Davis Cup upset over the Aussies will take the sting off.

Give it up to Agassi for reaching the final, especially with his heart-stopping, gutsy wins over Ferrero and Schuettler. But it was extremely painful watching the 33-year-old Andre play Federer, who was quicker to the ball all day and has more oomph on his shots. Agassi ended the year a very deserving No. 4, but the three guys ahead of him are simply more effective players now and that's not going to change in the long run.

Agassi hasn't won a tournament since April and his last decent shot at a Slam title will come two months from now Down Under. After that, he's only a dark horse wondering when it's time to go back to the barn and finally slam the door shut shut.

If Schuettler had pulled out his three-setter against Agassi, he would have ended the year No. 5 ahead of Coria. You can bet the German will be sitting on that loss all winter. Finishing in the year-end Top 5 is a stat everyone looks to. Finishing No. 6 is almost the same as finishing No. 10.

Bryan twins are doubles champs