Will Wimbledon Be Roddick’s Independence Day?

It’s rather ironic how tennis happens to schedule its majors around American holidays.

In January, the Australian Open always happens around Martin Luther King Day, while the Roland Garros honors the American soldiers who died liberating that nation by holding their event around Memorial Day.

And of course, it’s not Labor Day without tennis in Flushing Meadows and the Hamptons are relocated about 75 miles west.

Then there’s Wimbledon.

In the most ironic schedule of them all, the All England Tennis Club will declare their champion this season on the day America celebrates its independence for British.

For a while there, it looked like the United States invaded England with Wimbledon being the domain of the American men, but it’s been 10 years since Pete Sampras won his seventh British title and the US only has Andy Roddick’s three runners up to its credit.

Yet, after coming ever so close in 2009, this could be Roddick’s year to get off the snide and finally get the all elusive Grand Slam – something he’s been looking for since George W. Bush’s first term.

After slugging it out with Roger Federer for 5-plus sets last year. Can he finally win Wimbledon this season?

“I think I’ve been asked this question about 86,000 times since last year,” Roddick quipped. “But, I don’t know if ‘put behind you’, I don’t know exactly what that means. I’m always going to remember it. It’s always going be there. You don’t generally mind trick yourself into making it go away.

“The thing is, I have great memories last year. Everyone talks about a match, but it takes two weeks of getting to that match of playing pretty good tennis. I played some of my best stuff. It’s a tournament as a whole that I think I’ll always be extremely proud of.”

Roddick, though, will have to get through the same cast of characters. Federer will be Federer, while Rafael Nadal is back in form. He also says Andy Murray will have the ‘home court advantage” but that may remain to be seen, since there will be a tremendous amount of pressure on the Scotsman.

The 27 year-old has to be included in the group of top contenders. After trying to find his form, Roddick seemed to have come on in the last year bringing Federer to the brink, while playing his best tennis in years.

That’s why everyone wants to see if he can take it to the next level and he hopes he will be at the top of his game, at least during the second week.

“I did not have great stuff early on in the tournament last year,” Roddick explained. “I think if you look at my first round, I dropped a set in nearly every round until the fourth round action and then I started playing a lot better.

“The thing is, no matter how well you play on a given day, it starts over two days later. So, you know, like I said, I don’t think you get too high or low on form. It’s just a matter of surviving, giving yourself a chance to play again, and getting through a draw.”

As the fifth seed, Roddick will get fellow American Rajeev Ram in the first round and then plays the winner of the Jesse Witten/Michael Llodra match. It should run pretty smooth for America’s top seed, but you never know.

“At this point in the tournament are just worried about getting through the first one,” he said. “I don’t think that ever changes. I don’t really get too caught up in expectations. I get caught up in how you’re going win three sets on Monday. I don’t think — that really doesn’t change too much.”

As a tour veteran, of course that doesn’t change, but at the end of these two weeks, Roddick definitely hopes this Wimbledon will be another American revolution.

Topics: American Holidays, American Men, American Soldiers, Andy Murray, Andy Roddick, Australian Open, George W Bush, Great Memories, Hamptons, Holidays In January, Home Court Advantage, Martin Luther King, Martin Luther King Day, Pete Sampras, Rafael Nadal, Roger Federer, Roland Garros, Snide, Tennis Club, Wimbledon

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