2011 Brisbane International: Preview – Marcos Baghdatis vs. Andy Roddick
Meeting after a three-year break, Marcos Baghdatis’ and Andy “A-Rod” Roddick’s quarterfinal clash will wrap up Thursday’s play at the 2011 Brisbane International. A season opener in the ATP Tour, the Brisbane event is an ATP 250
event and a predecessor to the Australian Open.
Expected to be a thrilling clash, the quarterfinal is going to be the fourth meeting between the two players with Roddick leading the head-to-head 2-1. They last meet in 2007 at the Montreal Masters where the American secured his
second straight win over the Cypriot. Enjoying the statistical advantage, Roddick looks to extend his winning streak in today’s matchup.
A Top 10 player, Roddick finished last year ranked 8th in the world. This was A-Rod’s eighth year ending in the Top 10. He opened 2010 with a title win at Brisbane after defeating defending champion Radek Stepanek in
the final match. He won his second title of the year, in March, at the Miami Masters. He also put in two final appearances, making them at the San Jose event and the Indian Wells Masters. His 2010 run helped him secure a spot for himself in the elite eight-man
field at the season finale event in London, making him the only player besides Roger Federer to play at all three locations: Houston, Shanghai and London.
Roddick started his title defence at the event playing his opening clash against local wildcard entrant Marinko Matosevic, on Monday. Roddick had sailed to a 6-3, 6-2 win over the local with five aces and a loss of only eleven
points. Next, Andy moved ahead in his title defence after winning his second round clash with Alexandr Dolgopolov. Securing a close 6-4 win in the first set, Roddick wrapped up the match with a breadstick win in the second.
Unlike Roddick, Baghdatis did not enjoy smooth sailing into the event. Starting with a set loss against Florent Serra in his opening clash, Baghdatis bounced back in the second set to win it 7-5 before wrapping up with a 6-4 win
in the decider. Meeting Lukasz Kubot in the second round, Baghdatis enjoyed a straight set victory over the Pole. Winning by a twin set score of 6-2, 6-2 Baghdatis had succeeded in setting up his quarterfinal clash with Roddick.
Baghdatis had unofficially started 2011 in 2010, playing at the Mubadala World Tennis Championship in Abu Dhabi. However, he lost his opening match against Tomas Berdych. Ranked 20th in the world, Baghdatis had finished
the year with only one title win, winning it at Sydney. He had also made final appearances at Moscow and Washington.
Excited to play Roddick, Baghdatis said, “It is good to play a Top 10 player like Andy, it will be a great match and it will be nice to see how I perform.”
Enjoying all the advantages, be it statistical or psychological, Roddick is clearly the favourite to win the match tomorrow. However, should the pressure of a title defence get to the American, we may see the tables being turned
on him despite the higher ranking and the superior skill-set.
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