Oh no, there it is again...

That sick feeling that only a sport like tennis can give you. A sport with no jersey, no helmet, no face mask, nothing to hide behind. A sport where it is mano-a-mano for however long it takes. A sport with unbridled intensity, the ultimate battle of wills for as long as it takes to get the job done. With a sport like this, it is hard not to get this stomach-in-your-throat feeling when watching Roddick fall to Federer...again. I thought the same thoughts all over again for all of the battles between these too -- I even said it out loud, again, "I think he's gonna do it. He's gonna do it." I should have known right then and there that i was setting myself up for that feeling, that sick feeling that overcomes you when you're pulling for someone so hard, that it causes you to tremble with each point.

With Roddick, you feel like you know him. He let's you in when so many athletes push the public away. He has it all. The game, the humor, the realness, the intensity (that word keeps coming up), the fist pump...oh the fist pump (plus the scream of course). This guy just can't seem to get over that hump, that mountain, that Federer. The time could have been the two Wimbledon finals, it could have been a few short months ago at the US Open final, or it could have been today. We can only imagine how much this weighs on Roddick's mind. He is American tennis. But the fact that he continues to stay positive every time he goes down, is what will inevitably propel him to beat the guy. And when he does beat him -- and trust me, it will be soon -- maybe even later in this event, all the losses and struggle he has gone through will make that win all the sweeter for Roddick. And when that day comes, the sky will be the limit for Roddick, and nothing will seem impossible again.

(In case you were wondering, had this post been a SportsCenter feature, it would have been shot in a soft focus with twinkling piano music in the background. It would also be nominated for multiple Cable Ace awards.)