alignment...

Federer is TRULLY the greatest of all time.

And that is all that i will say about that.

Bcos eventhough i was thrilled at the sight of federer leaping like a mad salmon in the air with delight, i was even more so moved at the sight of a dejected Andrew Stephen "Andy" Roddick.

The many times Roddick has played and lost, he has taken it as a lesson, a prelim paper, a preview of the greater glory. Even when he lost his USOpen title to Federer for the first time, he was markedly eager to learn and play again. And again. And again.

After the quarters of last year's wimbledon, where he was beaten by a flash-in-the-pan Richard Gasquet, Roddick has almost quit. Never had he been more mortified at his own vulnerability.

But his wife, Brooklyn Decker, a model who knew almost next to nothing about tennis, held him together. He continued his career through the year, going averagely deep into tourneys with only minor success.

His style was still the same, huge HUGE serve, followed by... something else. He struggled with that part. Roddick was all about the serve. He holds the fastest serve in all of humanity at this point. And yet...

At the 2007 Aussie open, Federer embarrassed Roddick, outserving and blasting him off the court, as Roddick tried desperately to attack the net, only for Federer to overwhelm him instead. At the 2009 French Open, he went into retriever mode, running down everything with new-found fitness and finesse and touch, only for him to be outdone by a superior and flashier Frenchmen called Gael Monfils. At the 2009 BNP Paribas, he opted for a heavy topspin power baseliner approach, much more traditional to his standards, only to meet the then world no. 1, the mighty Rafael Nadal, who consequently knocked him away.

Roddick has tried everything, and in everything, he was... GOOD. Very good. But each time, he has met with a master in that something. His western forehand will never reach the RPMs of Nadal, his transition and attack game never as smooth or natural as Federer's, and his retrieving skills never has dogged as Monfils. He was stuck somewhere in the middle, with nothing but his serve.

This year.... that serve paid its dividends, in bulk.

In the 2009 Wimbledon finals, against Federer, Roddick's serve was untouchable. He could simply NOT BE BROKEN. He held. Game after game after game... no matter the score, no matter the pressure, his serve tore through the grass like a garden shear and saved him breakpoints, set points and match points.

It saved him everything, save one crucial Championship point. It went to Federer.

A cruel cruel cruel way to end a magnificent run. For 39 games, his serve was solid. Save that one time, and it cost him everything in that match.

So sad. And so unfair. If anything, Roddick deserved that Wimbledon title. He had come so far, learned so much and had managed to put it all together this time. For once, it all came together. He could win the baseline rallies against Federer. He volleyed more successfully than RF. He could run down Federer's winning shots. And his serve.... dear gawd, what a serve.

I have become a Roddick fan. Bcos if anything, it teaches us that hard work, determination and the reliance on what makes us... US, can take us places.

song of the day is "I'm Yours" by the Script, from a msn filesharing session that started at 2am in the morning... siao.