Andy Roddick lost in the first round of the French Open, sacked his coach, hired Brad Gilbert as replacement and promptly embarked on a winning run that had the chasing pack gasping for air.

A-Rod has proved himself to be America's flagbearer after Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi. Victory in the US Open confirmed he has indeed come of age. The scary part for the opposition is that he can still improve.

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