Amped up for Roddick-Federer, thoughts on Serena

	Andy Roddick finally topped Roger Federer in December's Kooyong exhibition, his first victory over the world No. 1 in nine tries. Mark Dadswell/Getty Images
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MELBOURNE, Australia -- Who do you pick in the semis: Andy Roddick or Roger Federer? Roddick's recent successes notwithstanding, I say Federer in four.
-- Kevin Knudson, Starkville, Miss.

Picking against Federer is just silly. But can I go on record as saying I give Roddick a reasonable chance? I don't think I've ever seen him play better than he has here. If the serve is clicking and if Federer gets agitated -- the weird gusts of wind clearly frustrated him the other night against Tom Robredo -- this could be interesting.

A lot of you have asked how much weight I put in Roddick's win over Federer at the Kooyong Exhibition. The answer is some. Yes, it's an exhibition. But as Roddick has said (repeatedly), he and Federer played with intentions of winning. I was fired up for Fernando Gonzalez's upset of Rafael Nadal on Wednesday, but Roddick-Federer is a serious popcorn match.

Serena Williams is a natural server (power and placement) and certainly goes after her shots -- so it isn't a mockery to the other players on tour. If Pete Sampras came out of retirement and played Wimbledon this year, he would make the final, just because of what he can do with the play (like Serena). Mockery? No way.
-- Michael Behrens, Raleigh, N.C.

I'm with Michael here. It would be one thing if Serena were playing awful tennis and still winning. But qualitatively, the opposition has been playing fine; she's just shown abundant guts (no pun intended) and found ways to win. This isn't about the weak WTA field so much as it's about Serena's uncanny abilities to come back from the abyss and to win big points. Side note: There should be a stats category that addresses play at crucial junctures. Serena may have finished her matches with buckets of unforced errors. But she has these amazing "lapses into accuracy" on the big points.

You are unfair to James Blake. He started tennis late for a pro. Since coming back from his serious injury, his record in the majors is over 70 percent, and that's fine by anyone's standards. You yourself point out that his loss to Gonzalez (who might be ranked above him at the end of the Oz) is nothing to be ashamed of. To say that, "His record in Grand Slams is underwhelming given his ranking," is a mean piece of disingenuousness, taking his ranking now and applying it retrospectively to the majors he played in as he climbed up the rankings. He got to the last 16 and lost to a good player. We all must get used to the fact that the rest of the world has caught up and just being American doesn't do it anymore.
-- Nicholas Brandes, Washington, D.C.

Come on, Nicolas. Blake has won nine titles, he's been in the top five, he's won more than $3 million in prize money since 2005. And not only has he never been beyond the quarters of a major, but he's never won a five-setter either. Surely, Blake himself would agree that his Slam results haven't kept pace with "regular results." I agree that his "late bloomer" status should be considered, but I still say it's striking for a top five player to have such poor results on the biggest stages.

Not to kick a guy when he's down, but which is the bigger offense? New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick's short-sleeved sweatshirt or Nadal's moss-colored clam diggers?
-- Megan, Indianapolis

Belichick will never get amnesty for the hoodie (though it seems to provoke less irritation than Nadal's pantaloons). Go Colts.

How are the seedings determined for doubles teams who don't play together regularly? It seems some players are teamed with a different player every tournament.
-- Nikki, New Mexico

It's based on a combined ranking. Which is why, say, Cara Black and Liezel Huber are seeded third even though they didn't play together last year.

OK, I gave in. I'm finally getting cable TV. Been enjoying a terrific Aussie Open -- lots of hours of lots of great tennis and pretty decent commentary, too. So, how is tennis fairing in the Nielsen Ratings? Is ESPN and company reveling in its contract with our sport?
-- Ed Soto, Lakewood, Calif.

Um, say you're from Lakewood! How about that Johnny Reb's southern joint? We all love the extended coverage, but let's just say that Nielsen rating records are safe.

Miscellany

• See, it's not just us. From Wednesday morning's Melbourne Age: "You may have noticed a little something about Rafael Nadal. That each time he steps up to serve, he tends to ... well, let's just say it, pick a major wedge out of his snazzy yet uncomfortable shorts."

• Martina Hingis warmed up for her quarterfinal match against Kim Clijsters with ... her fiancée Radek Stepanek.

• The Belgian paparazzi is all over this announcement. I guess we can stop speculating about the nature of "personal problems."