Andy Roddick got his clay-court season off to a solid start yesterday, beating Mardy Fish 6-1, 6-4 in an all-American matchup in the second round of the Rome Masters.
Roddick improved his record against his longtime friend to 8-1.
“It’s tough playing against someone you’re friends with, and unfortunately for Mardy I’ve played some good tennis throughout my career against him,” Roddick said.
PHOTO: EPA
In the first round, 14th-seeded Tommy Robredo defeated Juan Ignacio Chela 6-4, 6-1.
Fish outlasted Michael Llodra in three sets on Monday and appeared off his game at the start, losing the first set in 22 minutes with 14 unforced errors. The sixth-seeded Roddick had a first-round bye and came out firing his big serve effectively.
Roddick broke for a 4-3 lead in the second set when Fish missed a routine backhand into the net. Fish missed two more routine baseline shots to give Roddick the win.
It was Roddick’s second match on clay this year after a Davis Cup win over Austria’s Jurgen Melzer in February. Roddick snapped an 11-match losing streak to Roger Federer at the Sony Ericsson Open in Key Biscayne, Florida, a month ago, and led the US to a win over France in the Davis Cup quarter-finals a week later. He hadn’t played since.
The top-ranked Federer was scheduled to play later against one of his top rivals, Guillermo Canas, one of the few players with a winning record against Federer, taking three of five meetings.
■ HENIN BATTLES IN BERLIN
AGENCIES, BERLIN
World No. 1 Justine Henin admitted she is using the German Open to recover her flagging form ahead of next month’s French Open after she suffered a heavy defeat by Serena Williams earlier this year.
Henin, 25, has picked up two WTA titles this year, but after bowing out early at the Australian Open in January, she was hammered 6-2, 6-0 at the quarter-finals of the Miami tournament in March by eventual champion Williams.
It was the heaviest defeat for a reigning world No. 1 since Martina Hingis lost to Jelena Dokic by the same score at Wimbledon in 1999.
Henin then withdrew from last month’s Charleston tournament with a knee injury and this is her first tour event back ahead of Roland Garros which starts on May 26.
“I have really needed these last few weeks off to get my form back and to make tennis my priority again,” said Henin, who has a bye into the second round where she will play Taiwan’s Chan Yung-jan (詹詠然).
French starlet Tatiana Golovin was a first-round casualty when she was beaten by Denmark’s Caroline Wozniacki in straight sets on Monday.
Late on Monday afternoon, France’s Amelie Mauresmo withdrew from her first-round game yesterday against compatriot Aravane Rezai with an injury to her intercostal muscles.
Former world No. 1 Mauresmo said she is hoping to recover in time to play in Rome next week.
Mauresmo later explained that the problem had been caused by coughing.
“The pain started because of so much coughing that I haven’t been able to take care of since the Fed Cup,” Mauresmo said in comments on her Web site.
Tainan TSG Hawks slugger Steven Moya, who is leading the CPBL in home runs, has withdrawn from this weekend’s All-Star Game after the unexpected death of his wife. Moya’s wife began feeling severely unwell aboard a plane that landed at Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport on Friday evening. She was rushed to a hospital, but passed away, the Hawks said in a statement yesterday. The franchise is assisting Moya with funeral arrangements and hopes fans who were looking forward to seeing him at the All-Star Game can understand his decision to withdraw. According to Landseed Medical Clinic, whose staff attempted to save Moya’s wife,
The Tampa Bay Rays on Tuesday acquired Taiwanese-American outfielder Stuart Fairchild from the Atlanta Braves for cash considerations to fill the roster after All-Star second baseman Brandon Lowe was placed back on the injured list. Fairchild was designated for assignment by the Braves on Monday after hitting .216/.273/.333 in 28 games for Atlanta, with most of his work coming as a pinch runner or defensive replacement. He joins Tampa Bay as a versatile fourth outfielder option. To make room for Fairchild on the 40-man roster, the Rays transferred relief pitcher Manuel Rodriguez (forearm strain) from the 15-day injured list to the 60-day
Ukrainian coal miner Andrii’s face lit up when he talked about meeting Oleksandr Usyk. “Wow,” the 36-year-old said in English. Andrii and more than a dozen other war veterans were on hand when Usyk beat Daniel Dubois at Wembley Stadium on Saturday night to become the undisputed world heavyweight champion. It was a rematch of their 2023 bout that Andrii viewed under vastly different circumstances. “I watched this fight on the front line on my phone,” he said through an interpreter during a stop on Friday at the Ukrainian Embassy in London. “We were watching very quietly, but when he won there was loud
PENALTY MISS: ‘We practiced penalties,’ Spain coach Montse Tome said, while both her team’s spot-kicks were saved by Switzerland’s goalkeeper Livia Peng Spain ended Switzerland’s dreamy midsummer run through its home Women’s European Championship in a 2-0 win in the quarter-finals on Friday despite missing two penalty kicks. Swiss resistance was broken by the world champion’s two goals in a five-minute spell midway through the second half. Athenea Del Castillo slotted in a shot from Aitana Bonmati’s flicked assist in the 66th, just four minutes after coming off the bench, and Claudia Pina curled a shot from the edge of the penalty area in the 71st. Spain are to play France or Germany in the semi-finals in Zurich on Wednesday. The winner would face defending