Canada’s Raonic on the rise, set to face Australia’s Hewitt
MELBOURNE, Australia — The spirit remains more than willing after all these years. But the body willed by that spirit eventually stops listening.
And so when Andy Roddick, barely on the lighter side of 30 and Lleyton Hewitt, just on the dark side of it, took the court at the Australian Open on Thursday night for their secondround match, someone was going to break first.
Hewitt was the one who has had five surgeries over the last few years, the one who needed a wild card here after barely competing in 2011. But it was Roddick, whose career was blessedly healthy until he began approaching that not- so- magic number, who broke.
One false move, and Roddick retired with a hamstring strain after falling behind 3- 6, 6- 3, 6- 4.
It was a match that might have been a major final eight or nine years ago, shortly before the advent of Federer and Nadal and right after the peak of Sampras and Agassi, when those two were at the top of the men’s game. But it’s Hewitt, rather improbably, who is in the third round of his home Grand Slam.
The reward is a date with Canadian Milos Raonic in a match that will no doubt take place in Rod Laver Arena on Saturday night.
Raonic who, despite having had hip surgery last summer, says he’s moving even better now.
The attention and pomp surrounding the event will mark another milestone in the 21- year- old’s career. It’s what he’s been working for. And now he’ll get it — along with an outstanding opportunity to match his fourth- round result a year ago, likely again in Rod Laver Arena and against defending champion and world No. 1 Novak Djokovic.
The Canadian — in case there was any doubt — is now officially in the big time.
“For me it’s really going to be, again, as always, every match it’s about imposing myself, taking care of my serve, looking to try to dictate on the return games when I get the opportunities,” Raonic said after defeating Philipp Petzschner of Germany in four tricky sets Thursday.
“I feel the thing I’m doing much better this year is returning a lot better, getting a lot more returns in, giving myself that opportunity,” he added. “Not always converting after it, but it’s something I’m still working on.”
Raonic didn’t know his next opponent when he spoke. He has met Roddick before, but this will be his first meeting with Hewitt.
Without the monster serve to put pressure on Raonic’s return game, and given his physical struggles, Hewitt should prove a slightly less challenging foe even if the lion’s heart beats as strongly as ever.