Goran's guys come back big time

He's back again. Goran is back. Goran "I've lost my mind" Ivanisevic arrived back on Centre Court with a bang. Literally. Forty-one of them which his 18-year-old American opponent, Andy Roddick, couldn't get a racquet to and 69 of them Roddick was able to touch but unable to get back into play.

Simple addition tells us Ivanisevic hit 110 serves that Roddick could not return.

The strange thing, too, is that despite the surreal quality of the match and the fact that it occasionally drifted implausibly from the "normal" game of tennis, the crowd loved it, metaphorically embracing Ivanisevic as he tore off his shirt at the end and hurled it into the grasping hands. A smiling, vivacious Goran. What's going on?

The match was a rush for the power junkies and a chance to see how the future of American tennis - Roddick - would react when he entered uncharted waters. It was tennis largely of a narrow dimension but also enormously impressive and at times overwhelming.

Roddick would never before have faced such a consistently violent opponent as Ivanisevic. Sure, the teenager lost 7-6, 7-5, 3-6, 6-3, but few could complain of this former junior world champion's impact on the tournament.

Roddick was up against a renaissance man, who had in 1992, 1994 and 1998 been to Wimbledon finals and left shredded each time before disappearing from view last year.

Most believed that to be the end of a colourful Ivanisevic era. His memorable words following the five-set defeat by Pete Sampras in 1998 were "I want to die."

We believed him. Not any longer. Goran is back and he wants to live and live big.

And so he did. In the first set the left-hander averaged two aces a game. He kept that tempo going until the 10th game in the second set, then hit four. Ace. Ace. Ace. Ace. Game over.

He nearly did the same in the third set but clipped the tape with his fourth. Still three aces and an unreturnable delivery. Roddick was sucking on the hind teat of experience.

"I mean, when you don't feel like you even have a chance in return games you know your pretty helpless. It's not fun," said the bemused American.

Ivanisevic took the first speedy set 7-5 in a tie-break before earning three beak points on the Roddick serve in the 11th game of the second set. Roddick, at the net, floated his backhand wide, allowing Ivanisevic to serve out to go two sets up.

While for the most part Roddick could only watch, he was bound to find openings, and in the third set worked two break points as Ivanisevic wavered slightly. He capitalised when Ivanisevic found the net with a backhand volley for 2-1.

Inexperience played a critical role as Roddick injudiciously played drop shots at the wrong time and hit hard forehands perhaps too often.

It was finally his ragged eighth service game that, critically, allowed Ivanisevic to prise open the set. Roddick hit long, slipped, netted a shot and then double faulted to hand the break to his opponent for 3-5.

Ivanisevic nervously served out the match, unbelievably allowing Roddick a break point before cracking down two aces to finish.

Playing to the gallery, the wildcard entry described the conversation going on in his head at the end.

"They (the various Gorans) were nervous. I said, 'Guys, guys, one has to be under control'. But they were both going a little bit. One was rushing, the other was rushing a little more. Then the third one came and said 'Guys relax, it's a lovely court just calm down.'

"The third one had to come. He's the emergency 911 call and he came on deuce. Calm down, two aces thank you.

"Now it's the second week. I always say the first tournament is over. Now the second one starts."

Goran now faces Greg Rusedski in what could be an overblown Hollywood spectacular "Battle G-Force." And as Ivanisevic dryly observed; "Gonna be another beautiful match to watch. Very, very exciting. You know 15-0, 30-0, 40-0, game. Fifteen love, 30-0, 40-0, game . . ."