Andy Roddick kicked the red powder off his shoes one last time Sunday, happy to be done with clay and ready to return to the hardcourts back home for the Davis Cup quarterfinals.
Roddick beat Tomas Berdych 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, 7-6 (4) Sunday to lead the United States to a 4-1 victory over the Czech Republic in the first round of the World Group.
"As far as the weight of the situation goes," Roddick said, "It definitely could be one of my best matches on clay."
The victory gave the Americans an insurmountable lead in the best-of-five format, and Roddick ran his record to 8-0 in Davis Cup matches with victory on the line. In the final match, which had no bearing on the outcome, Bob Bryan beat Lukas Dlouhy 7-6 (5), 6-4.
The United States will next play Spain in Winston-Salem, N.C., in April. It will be a rematch of the 2004 final in Seville, when the Spanish hosts beat the Americans on clay spread so thick it took any sting out of the U.S. game.
"It was similar to a sandbox," Roddick recalled.
Sunday, February 18, 2007
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