Andy Roddick: Roddick's Early Exit at Wimbledon Is No Surprise

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Andy Roddick Crashes Out In Third Round at Wimbledon, But His Early Exit Should Be No Surprise

Andy Roddick's quest for his second career Grand Slam title came to an abrupt end once again on Thursday, when the eighth-seeded American crashed out in the third round at the All-England Club.

Roddick fell in straight sets to unseeded Spaniard Feliciano Lopez, who had never beaten Roddick in any match before, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (2), 6-4.

While it's never fully expected to see top seeds like Roddick crash out early from Wimbledon, in the case of the American, it really isn't that big of a surprise.

Andy has never fared all that well in the Grand Slam tournaments. For all the promise he once held, he's won a grand total of one Slam, the 2003 U.S Open, and has reached the finals at just four other Slams in his career.

Sure, three of those finals came at Wimbledon, where Roddick fell to Roger Federer in each matchup, but a closer look at Andy's game reveals that we really shouldn't be surprised by this early exit.

Must Read: Roger Federer and the Top 10 Men's Grass Court Players Now.

Roddick may be in the best shape of his life, but it doesn't seem to be helping his game all that much. He's won just one tournament this year, against a soft field in the ATP Regions Morgan Keegan Championship, and has struggled with poor form against weak opponents. The fact is, Roddick is no longer the best American hope to win a Slam. That honor has fallen to Mardy Fish and John Isner, as both of them have had more success in recent seasons against the top contenders.

Is Roddick still an elite player? To an extent; he's got the same big serve as always, which is virtually unreturnable when it's clicking, but he continues to make dumb mistakes and let chances slip through his fingers.

On top of that, Roddick has always been a boom-or-bust kind of player on the tour; when he's clicking, he soars through the ranks and can contend with anyone, but when he's not, he loses to Feliciano Lopez in the third round at Wimbledon.

One need look no further than his Wimbledon track record for proof of that; Roddick has been to three finals at the All-England Club, but he's crashed out before the quarterfinals in three of the last four years.

Roddick is still capable of winning another Slam at some point; like I said, when his serve is hitting he's tough to beat, and he's shown that when he gets on a roll, he can make deep runs in Slams. But, given his history on the big stage, and the inconsistent nature of his game, we're swiftly approaching the point where the 28-year-old leaving early just isn't a surprise anymore. He's proven too unreliable too many times in Slams, and cannot be trusted to make deep runs, even on the grass he thrived on just a few seasons ago.

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