Roddick on a Roll in Rome

For Andy Roddick, still only 19 years old, everything is a learning process, and after half an hour on the campo centrale here yesterday against Andrei Pavel it appeared this particular lesson was going to short and harsh.

Pavel, his top-spin backhand silky smooth, was manoeuvring the 13th seed into oblivion, and it said much for Roddick's determination and developing character that he turned the match around for a 1-6, 6-4, 6-3 second-round victory in the Italian Open.

Deservedly, he was pretty pleased with himself: "I didn't feel I was hitting the ball badly in the first set, it just wasn't going my way. But I kept my head together and didn't go nuts - which was a nice surprise."

This is Roddick's first full season on the tour, having reached the quarter-finals at the US Open last year where he was beaten by Australia's Lleyton Hewitt, the eventual champion.

With Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi gently and inevitably moving over the horizon, much rests on Roddick's broad shoulders, as men's tennis without a strong US presence would clearly be bad for the game, commercially and as a spectacle. Not that Agassi showed any sign of waning yesterday, defeating Switzerland's Michel Kratochvil 6-0, 6-1 in only 43 minutes.

Agassi was a man on a mission, having been beaten 7-6, 7-6 by Kratochvil this year in the second round at Indian Wells, where Agassi was the reigning champion. It had rained heavily all morning in Rome, and the clay courts were slow and heavy. Agassi adjusted his game to perfection, leaving poor Kratochvil floundering.

Roddick, playing in Rome for the first time, might have gone the same way as the Swiss but served much more consistently against Pavel in the second set, and had much better control of his forehand, noticeably across court. The Romanian's ground-strokes grew ever more ragged, while his temper frayed accordingly. Once Roddick had won the second set, there was little doubt he would force home the advantage.

He next plays South Africa's Wayne Ferreira, who defeated Yevgeny Kafelnikov 6-4, 4-6, 6-2. The young American feels he can win, which would please the Romans. They whistled Roddick in the opening set, notably when he missed the easiest of volleys, but warmed to him by the close.