Roddick needs Brad Gilbert

[vllockhart]

Before Andy Roddick teamed up with Brad Gilbert he was a young, talented kid with loads of potential. After he hired Gilbert, he was giving Federer all he could handle and winning a slam.

He made a huge mistake by canning the guy. Gilbert knows how to coach champions and Andy's game has been seriously missing the spark for almost two years.

Whether Andy was not willing to adhere to Gilbert's work ethic or he just disagreed with the tactics Gilbert was trying to instill in him, he flamed out with that decision. I don't see him pulling himself out of this rut without some serious help.

[MMkay5]

whose roddicks coach now

[West Coast Ace]

Originally Posted by MMkay5

whose roddicks coach now

Dean Goldfine.

[federerhoogenbandfan]

I could be wrong but I believed Roddick had fired Gilbert because he didnt win a slam in 2004 and that dissapointment caused him to fire him. If that was the case it was a mistake, but one I doubt he can go back on now. He has to much pride to grovel and that is what he would have to do. I also have read he gets along well with Dean and enjoys working with him. He is still #3 in the World so he is not a bad player all of the sudden.

[West Coast Ace]

Maybe Goldfine tells Andy what he wants to hear "you're the BEST tennis player in the galaxy, buddy!" while Gilbert gives him the Truth "standing 20' behind the baseline, with a lame backhand and lamer return of serve, and too busy chasing skirts, you'll NEVER beat Fed or win another Slam!"

[hoosierbr]

That boat left the dock a long time ago.

Besides, why would BG want to coach Roddick again?

[BaseLineBash]

Listen, all we have to go on is Roddick with BG and then Roddick without BG. Just looking at those and seeing how opposite they are...he needs BG or someone with the same approach as BG. P Blank!

[BaseLineBash]

P.S, Just look at Agassi. BG was with him for 8 years and we know Andre likes things done on his terms alone yet he was made in '99 to go to the French even without the right preperation yet he won and one can thank BG for making him go. Some might say he's obnoxious or Tarantino like, but he gets in his guys heads and makes them believe.

[Rusedski Fan]

I happen to like Dean Goldfine. I think he is the right guy for Roddick. Dean or Brad are not on the court with Andy.

Andy has to start getting it into his head regarding his weak return game. It is just never there. He gets beat by the top players because of it.

Anyone on this board really think that a professional coach like Goldfine has not pleaded with Andy to start taking the ball early and working to be more aggressive with his returns? I know Dean wants Andy to do this, but Andy is the one standing 20 feet behind the baseline every match, not Goldfine.

Andy should have entered Delray and worked through the qualies. He needs the work. Make a point to play the qualies on or around the baseline and see what happens. Work on it during match play against some of the lower ranked players.

Maybe Roddick is content being 3 or 4 in the world? I don't thinks so, but sometimes you have to fail to succeed. His return game is terrible. He may lose some matches trying to work on being on the baseline taking the ball early, but it might save his career against the likes of Federer and Nadal in the next few years.

The window in tennis is short, ask Pat Cash. You might as well go down fighting. His return game is the worst in the top 10. I see dark horizons for Andy if this part of his game continues. The young guns are coming. Monfils, Gasquet, Bagdadits, Joachim Johanson, and Andy Murray.

[The Pusher Terminator]

Brad has an awesome tennis mind and Andy really does need him badly. The problem, however is that from what I hear ...Gilbet is a pain in the neck. He just never ever shuts up. Agassi called Gilbert "motor mouth." Great coach but a very tough person to deal with on a daily basis.

[West Coast Ace]

Originally Posted by Rusedski Fan

Anyone on this board really think that a professional coach like Goldfine has not pleaded with Andy to start taking the ball early and working to be more aggressive with his returns?

Yes, that's exactly what I think. And you even bolstered my argument further down

Originally Posted by Rusedski Fan

...the window in tennis is short...

that goes for coaches too! Goldfine probably digs the limelight and knows the best way to make it last is to not rock the boat.

[DashaandSafin]

Use the search function:
Top of the page
There has been at least 5-10 threads on this subject.

My personal opinion (again)

Let Roddick do what he wants. Obviously he felt something was wrong if he fired Brad. If he wanted Brad back he would have asked and im guessing that Brad would happily come back becuase of the fame he recived.

[vllockhart]

Originally Posted by DashaandSafin

Use the search function:
Top of the page
There has been at least 5-10 threads on this subject.

My personal opinion (again)

Let Roddick do what he wants. Obviously he felt something was wrong if he fired Brad. If he wanted Brad back he would have asked and im guessing that Brad would happily come back becuase of the fame he recived.

If you feel there have been so many threads on the subject, then why not just not respond to it? No one put a gun to your head.

[devila]

He's playing for his brother, who failed to succeed in tennis.
Roddick has perfume, AMEX ads and a need to go to charities and Playboy parties. Agassi gave him the idea of starting a charity foundation, and he can't work much with a talented coach while not participating at the event.

He believes he can lean on American tournament directors because he knew them for years. He failed to communicate with the Delray Beach td.

Brad couldn't chase the ball down on Houston clay court. Do you think he's underrated? He covered up his lack of skills by promoting himself as a great teacher. He only rode the coat tails of top 10 players. I don't see him coaching 100th ranked players.
He told Roddick to stand far back and serve 160 mph. He blamed Roddick for not playing clay tournaments, despite the fact that he couldn't coach and both agreed to skip tournaments.

Goldfine says he's afraid that Roddick would lose in the qualifying round and may lose confidence from that. Jerkoff.
His former student, Todd Martin, told ESPNEWS, "Roddick didn't play awful."
No wonder Martin failed to win a big title.

[Defcon]

I believe it was BG who came up with the tactic of standing 20ft behind to receive serve, and even further for the 2nd serve, because Roddick's ROS is so weak and that way he could at least get the ball into play, and supposedly 'get into the head' of the other guy. In 2003, when Roddick had his breakout season, Brad was asked why Andy didn't SV, and he replied 'why should he? he doesn't need to'. I don't think Brad was a great coach at all.

And the reason he was fired and Goldfine hired are very public - Brad didn't get along with Roddick or his team, was asking Andy to put in more effort, and basically wasn't being a yes-man. There was a whole series of articles about how Goldfine was being 'interviewed' by Roddick to make sure they would get along. I don't see him questioning or even pushing Roddick.

[devila]

Actually, BG wrote in his book about how helpful he was to Roddick. He couldn't care less about Roddick, frankly. He did say yes to jumping out of airplanes with him. Nonsense. He told Roddick to hit him hard on the shoulder. BG thought Roddick couldn't accept that he lost against Henman and that was supposed to be great advice. Many times, he advertised Agassi while constantly putting down Roddick.

[AJK1]

Gilbert was an ordinary player, and an ordinary coach. His book is even worse. Don't believe the hype. Whoever coaches Roddick won't make a difference, he is just not good enough. Federer didn't even have a coach for a while, and he still won a couple of slams.

[BaseLineBash]

AJK1, BG once held the number 4 ranking in singles and Andre won 5 of his 8 slams under the tutelage of BG. What the hell is your definition of "ordinary"?

[Rusedski Fan]

Brad Gilbert sucks as a coach? I don't think Roddick or Agassi think that. Tatiana Golvin goes to Brad's house to work on her game. I read all his books. I thought one was tactical for playing and one was story based and inspirational.

Brad does talk alot. I sat next to players box in Cincy and he is a talker.

I also don't see many coaches out scouting like I saw when Brad coached Andy and Andre.

My point is simple. Roddick needs to be more aggresive with the return game. Not Gilbert, Goldfine, Bolleterri, Roach, Todd Martin, or any other coaching guru is going to change Roddick to move to the baseline and take it early. My suggestion is he works with Andre to learn a return from top to bottom. Strip him down and start over. His return is that bad.

No coaches, he needs to change it and I hope Andy will.

[FalconX]

I think it was a personality mismatch more than anything else. I think andy is a nice fellow. Gilbert on the other hand is the definition of the word *******. Some of the things they were doing when Gilbert was the coach I have a feeling didn't sit well with Andy. Remember that whole thing about eating at restraunts serving food from the next day's opponent country. Or all the gamesmanship that roddick got into. I think Agassi finally dumped him for the same reason.