That old school spirit
WIMBLEDON, England — When it comes to hopes for U.S. men at Grand Slam events, Andy Roddick is used to going solo.
So he was glad to be joined in the third round at Wimbledon by two alumni from his high school.
The No. 6-seeded Roddick lost serve only once Thursday and defeated Igor Kunitsyn 6-4, 6-2, 3-6, 6-2.
Roddick next plays good friend Jurgen Melzer, the Wimbledon boys champion in 1999. Roddick has won their eight previous meetings.
The biggest surprise was Jesse Levine, the lone remaining qualifier in the men's draw. He upset former No. 1 Marat Safin in the opening round, then beat lucky loser Pablo Cuevas 6-2, 6-1, 4-6, 4-6, 6-3 Thursday. It's Levine's best showing in a Grand Slam tournament.
Another American, No. 28-seeded Mardy Fish, was to play No. 4 seed Novak Djokovic today. Fish, Levine and Roddick all attended Boca Prep International School in Florida.
In today's action, Serena Williams advanced to the fourth round at by defeating Roberta Vinci 6-3, 6-4.
Bidding for her third Wimbledon title and her first since 2003, Williams hit 10 aces. She committed only 12 unforced errors.
Williams' opponent in the round of 16 Monday will be Daniela Hantuchova, who beat Ai Sugiyama 6-4, 6-3. That ended Sugiyama's 17th Wimbledon.
Fourth-seeded Elena Dementieva beat Regina Kulikova 6-1, 6-2 today, and seventh-seeded Vera Zvonareva pulled out because of an ankle injury before her match against No. 26 Virginie Razzano.
Three U.S. males in the round of 32 doesn't necessarily signal a bright future for American fortunes that have been in decline for years. At 27, Fish is a year older than Roddick, while Levine, 21, is ranked only 133rd.
"I'd love nothing more than for some young 17-, 18-year-old to pop out and get in there in the top 15 or the top 10," Roddick said. "But, you know, you can't really deal in hypotheticals. ... We can't really make fantasy worlds up. You just kind of deal with it and move on."
Women's winners Thursday included five-time champion Venus Williams, top-ranked Dinara Safina and three former No. 1 players — Jelena Jankovic, French Open champion Svetlana Kuznetsova and 2006 Wimbledon winner Amelie Mauresmo.
