Andy Roddick continues his Brisbane title defence against the unorthodox Alexandr Dolgopolov.
Roddick got the ball rolling in 2011 with a very comfortable 6-3, 6-2 win over wildcard Marinko Matosevic and the American's outlook was pretty chipper as he anticipated the sterner tests to come.
“I feel healthy and fit probably for the first time since May last year, so that’s a good thing,” he told the media. “There’s nothing I’m trying to cover up, I don’t feel short on practice, I don’t question the last month that I’ve put in and that’s a first for a little while.”
Roddick would have been pleased to conserve energy, spending just 72 minutes on court and today he will get his first taste of the burning Brisbane sun during the day session.
Dolgopolov is a tricky opponent, far from your run of the mill baseliner and he's got plenty of variety in his locker to unsettle you from the back of the court. He outwitted the big hitting Igor Andreev 6-2, 6-4 in round one and in particular Roddick will have to get used to the Ukrainian's liking for the forehand slice.
However we predict Roddick to progress though expect a competitive two setter
