[情報] Roddick upbeat for new season
Roddick upbeat about new season
1/6/2004
Source:The Peninsula
by D RAVI KUMAR
DOHA- The timing was perfect, it could not have come at a better time. Just as
the new tennis season kicked-off yesterday, came a stern warning from the man
who topped the heap last year that he was in no mood to rest on his laurels and
that his confidence level was on a new high.
World number one American Andy Roddick, who is the top seed at the ATP Tour's
$1m Qatar Open which began here yesterday, said he wanted to improve upon his
2003 performance and also to set higher standards for himself as he promised to
improve various aspects of his game with special emphasis on fitness.
Speaking at pre-tournament press conference yesterday, the 21-year-old American
who takes to the court today in a first round clash against Russia's Nikolay
Davydenko, said the only way he hoped to go was forward.
The rising American star said he was mentally a much stronger player now and
added that his goal for the new season was to improve his game – a clear
warning to his rivals who faced his fury last year when he had a terrific 72-19
win-loss record in singles.
“I have gained a lot of confidence following my good show last year. It was a
dream year for me. It was my best season,” Roddick said.
The 21-year-old won six titles on three different surfaces out of eight finals,
including the US Open crown.
“My self esteem isn’t affected by something like hitting tennis balls, but my
mentality is a lot different from what it was last year,” he added.
“A lot of the fear in being a professional tennis player is the fear about the
unknown. But now I am confident of tackling it,” he said.
Roddick's career-graph rose like a meteor in 2003 – from No. 10 at the
beginning to No. 1 at the end. After a shocking first round exit at the French
Open, Roddick made a coaching change as he teamed up with Brad Gilbert, former
mentor of Andre Agassi and from then on there was no looking back.
However Roddick refused to admit that he was trying to shape his game on Agassi
's lines.
“I see no similarities. Andre (Agassi) is a great player. Perhaps, 12 years
ago Andre might have been where I am today. That’s all, there ends the
similarities.I have a long time to go before I reach that level,” a modest
Roddick said.
The Florida resident, who lost to German Rainer Schuettler in the semi-finals
of the 2003 Australian Open, said that this year he was going to Australia
fully confident, but agreed that there were a lot of guys who could beat even
the most talented on a given day.
“I am going to Australia fully confident. I thought playing in Doha would help
me prepare well for Australia. The Doha tournament has a good field. The other
option could have been playing in Kooyong, but it is an exhibition event and I
thought Qatar was a better option where I could experience some competitive
atmosphere,” he said.
Roddick refused to single out any particular player as his principal opponent
in the new season.
“There are a lot of good players on the circuit. Roger (Federer), probably
could be the most talented. But I tell you there are quite a few players who
could take on the best and beat them on a given day,” he added.
Asked to comment on a possible semi-final clash in Doha with Morocco's Younes
El Aynoui, Roddick said he respected the Moroccan and observed that even at 33
El Aynoui is a dangerous player.
“Younes is a good player and we became closer after our marathon quarter-final
at the Australian Open last year. I am sure Younes is capable of producing yet
another memorable performance,” Roddick said.
To a pointed reference, Roddick said Qatar's support to America during the Iraq
conflict was no reason for his opting to play in Doha.
“That (Qatar’s support to US) is not a factor at all for my coming here. I am
not a politician, nor a soldier. I am here to play tennis and I enjoy every
moment of my stay here,” he said.
Roddick also sounded confident of American tennis’ future when he said that
there were an array of youngsters ready to take over from the seniors.
“(Michael) Chang has gone, Pete (Sampras) has also called it a day. Andre
(Agassi) is still there, but not going to be there for long. But there are many
youngsters and I am sure we (America) can regain the lost Davis Cup glory,”
he concluded.
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我以為他還是要去Kooyong? 不去了嗎?
被拿來和Agassi比較時 表現出尊敬和謙虛
政治敏感問題 也處理得很好
不愧是Andy!
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※ 編輯: carillon 來自: 140.112.193.85 (01/06 13:49)
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