SPORTS> Tennis
|
SPORTS> Tennis
|
|
Comeback kid Roddick never went away
(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-08-28 14:17 RODDICK MATURES While Roddick's game has matured so has the player. Recently married, Roddick concedes life has changed and along with it the way fans see him, although he insists at his core nothing is different. "During my career I've kind of been portrayed as every single type of person: good, bad, ugly, rude," said Roddick. "This is kind of the first time it's been presented in a light that's kind of the hard-working, everyday-Joe-type tennis player trying to make good while the meat and potatoes of who I am has probably stayed the same." Some of the credit for Roddick's resurgence can be directly traced to Larry Stefanki, who signed on as coach in December, putting a premium on fitness and whipping the world number five into the best shape of his career. While Roddick's booming serve remains a major threat it is no longer the only weapon in an expanding arsenal. His fitness has brought new poise and confidence that has allowed him to tinker with his groundstrokes providing a variety of new options. "He used to serve a touch bigger, go for the serve a little bit more," said Gilbert. "I think everything in his game looks better now, he's moving 1,000 times better. Not only is he moving better when he gets there he can do something a lot better. Sometimes things have a way of coming together. "When you have more harmony off the court, you have more harmony on the court. "When I was with him he was 20, he's older now, he's mature and he's been through a lot of battles. "He looks very keen and motivated out there to keep fighting the fight."
|
