Roddick gets call, survives upset bid

MELBOURNE, Australia (AP) — Four days after an angry outburst over the rules relating to replays and line calls, Andy Roddick got a crucial call in his favor in his fourth-round Australian Open win over Fernando Gonzalez.

Roddick held off the 2007 Australian Open finalist 6-3, 3-6, 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 on Sunday to advance to the quarterfinals at the season’s first major for the sixth time in eight years.

The 27-year-old American will meet No. 14 Marin Cilic of Croatia, who ousted U.S. Open champion Juan Martin del Potro in five sets.

“I got a little lucky tonight, but sometimes it’s better to be lucky than good,” said seventh-seeded Roddick, who hopes to end a Grand Slam drought that dates to the 2003 U.S. Open.

After wasting four set points in the 10th game of the fourth set, Roddick rallied from 40-0 down in the 12th — Gonzalez’ next service game — to earn a fifth set point. Then he hit the contentious, dipping crosscourt forehand.

The ball was called out and Gonzalez didn’t take a swing. Roddick challenged the call immediately, and the evidence showed that the ball just caught the line, giving Roddick the set to level at two-all and igniting a protest from Gonzalez.

The Chilean argued that he could have had a play on the ball and that chair umpire Enric Molina should have replayed the point.

“In my opinion you could not have reached the ball,” Molina told Gonzalez in Spanish.

Gonzalez strode back for the changeover, kicking two water bottles and a courtside chair before slumping into it. The entire episode had a similar feel to the end of Roddick’s second-round win over Brazilian Thomasz Bellucci, when he angrily objected to a decision that went against him on a match point.

After reviewing a TV replay of that point following his match Wednesday, Roddick apologized and said his interpretation, on reflection, may not have been correct.

After seeing Gonzalez’ reaction late Sunday night, Roddick said he still didn’t understand how the rule is applied as to when a point gets replayed.

“I know he was pretty upset about the challenge and that rule no one seems to know about,” Roddick said. “I can certainly sympathize with his frustrations.”