WorldTennisMagazine.com takes a look back at ATP World Tour Finals from yester-year in this special series – ATP World Tour Final Rewind. Today we look back to an epic match from November 15, as excerpted from the book ON THIS DAY IN TENNIS HISTORY ($19.95, New Chapter Press, www.TennisHistoryBook.com)
2006
Andy Roddick lets three match points fall by the wayside – and a golden opportunity to beat the near-unbeatable world No. 1 Roger Federer – in a 4-6, 7-6(8), 6-4 loss in round-robin play at the year-end Tennis Masters Cup in Shanghai, China. Says Federer of Roddick, “He served out of a tree. It was incredible. He was serving a lot of aces. Pretty much for two sets I was trying to stay in and I was a bit lucky in the end because the second-set tiebreak, he should have gotten it. He served for it at 6-4 and he was disappointed, I think, but for me it was a hell of a win…I think he played the perfect match for two sets. Maybe he lacked one serve in the end, so it was unfortunate for him. I tried my best, it’s always hard to control against Andy when he’s serving so big like in the first two sets. I got a bit lucky in the end. In the third set I was pretty much in control from the start. I’m really, really happy to not be under pressure like he is now.” Says Roddick, “I put myself in a position to win tonight. With the progress I’ve made over the last four or five months, I feel like I’m only getting better each time I step out there on the court. It’s tough right now, but it definitely feels like it’s on the upswing tonight. I felt I was unlucky not to win this one.”