TENNIS MASTERS CUP Roddick's 10-point run ends Coria's upset bid
Andre Agassi and Rainer Schuettler advanced to a semifinal match.
HOUSTON (AP) -- Andy Roddick was being outplayed, outhustled and, yes, even outserved by Guillermo Coria.
Then, suddenly, Roddick summoned up all the skills and grit that made him No. 1.
Down a break in the final set and reeling a bit, Roddick went on a 10-point run to grab the upper hand and pull away for a 6-3, 6-7 (4), 6-3 victory Friday night that put him in the Tennis Masters Cup semifinals.
Roddick went 2-1 in round-robin action and advanced to a semifinal against Wimbledon champion Roger Federer (3-0). Coria (1-2) was eliminated.
Other semifinal
The other semifinal today will pit No. 5 Andre Agassi against No. 6 Rainer Schuettler, the man he beat in the Australian Open final. Already assured of advancing, Schuettler lost his last round-robin match 7-5, 6-4 Friday to Carlos Moya.
The fourth-ranked Coria played nearly flawless tennis in the second set and the early part of the third, which he led 3-1. But Roddick won the final five games of the match with some spectacular play -- and with some help from his Argentine opponent.
Coria was up 3-2, 40-love when he missed five consecutive forehands to get broken. Roddick won the next five points, too, including holding at love for a 4-3 edge with the help of a 136-mph service winner.
His serve working much better than it did in the middle portion of the match, Roddick cruised at the end, closing the match with back-to-back aces.
Coria had won the prematch coin toss and chose to let Roddick serve first, as if to say, "Bring it on!"
Coria did return very well for stretches, and Roddick's serve wasn't its best: Among other problems, he double-faulted to hand over the second-set tiebreaker. During the changeover, Roddick chopped his racket into his bag a half-dozen times.
Roddick finished with 12 aces and a total of 38 winners -- 13 more than Coria -- in a riveting match. Roddick was even moved to applaud a couple of Coria's better efforts.