Mar 25, 2000
 

KEY BISCAYNE -- After earning his first pro victory Thursday at the Ericsson Open, Boca Raton Prep senior Andy Roddick stayed home Friday to avoid the hoopla at the Tennis Center at Crandon Park.

When Roddick, the best junior player in the world, walks on Stadium court tonight to face  top-seeded Andre Agassi, the flashbulbs will be popping and the 17-year-old's anonymity may be gone forever.

"It's his first brush with greatness, playing a great player," said Nick Saviano, USTA director of coaching education. "It'll be a wonderful experience for him. Hopefully, he'll be relaxed and enjoy himself and play up to his potential, whatever that may be."

In the past four months, Roddick has gone from just another junior player to U.S. Davis Cup hitting partner of Agassi and Pete Sampras in Los Angeles (April 7-9). He won the Eddie Herr, Orange Bowl, Banana Bowl and finally the Australian Open Juniors, the first American to do so in more than 50 years. Still, the sudden attention and notoriety hasn't gone to his head. Roddick isn't sure whether to bring his racket or autograph book today.

"When I pass Sampras or Agassi in the hall, I just stop," Roddick said. "I've never met them. I mean (Agassi is) one of the best baseline players of all time. If I hit anything short, he'll pounce on it and put it away. I'm nothing compared to what he is."

Agassi, winner of six Grand Slams and 45 ATP titles, lost his opening-round match in Key Biscayne last year to unheralded Dominik Hrbaty. But even Roddick seems star struck by an opponent who will be inducted into the Ericsson Hall of Fame today.

"I'm surrounded by legends," Roddick said of Agassi and his No. 1 fan, Steffi Graf. "I grew up watching them win everything. They're legendary to me."

"Andre's great with the younger players, and I'm sure after the match, he'll offer a word or two of encouragement to Andy, and that's invaluable," Saviano said.

Sunday, March 26, 2000, in the Miami Herald
Grandest of days in the sun Tennis and well-deserved honors BY EDWIN POPE

Some scary reptile, either a little alligator or a big iguana, sidled up to Butch Buchholz as the boss was striding into one of the Ericsson Open's dozens of eating establishments. Buchholz never missed a beat. ``This guy came to the right place for lunch!'' he boomed.

Quintessential Buchholz. Butch and brother Cliff are the Ericsson, as they were the Lipton for its for its first 15 seasons.It all came together Saturday. The Buchholz brothers and ex-queen Steffi Graf became the first members of the Ericsson Open Hall of Fame, all in nifty coincidence with what mavens called the heaviest one-day volume of top talent in tennis game's history.

Forty-two of the top 64 seeds in both men's and women's brackets played. Because Andre Agassi was one of them, his induction was postponed until today.

Nifty touch, too, including Graf in the first Hall of Fame class. For only Graf could have followed the impossibly brilliant paths cut by Chris Evert and Martina Navratilova.

``Has anyone ever given tennis more thrills or pleasure than Steffi Graf?'' Hall of Fame emcee Bud Collins asked.

``No!'' thundered back the Stadium Court crowd. Cries of ``Never!'' rang out around the green bowl. Graf beamed. More cheers cascaded down.

Forgive, if you will, my tendency to get mushy about these people and this tournament. It is as commercial as any sports event. Every sponsor, including my own newspaper, is clearly out to sell its product through this medium. Also know this: Each sponsor will have to work hard to find a better marketing route, for no sports event in South Florida history has been so fan-friendly.

Only Grand Slam venues rank as superior to the Ericsson site, and much of that derives from tradition rather than physical comfort. None boast as many amenities for fans outside the competitive areas. The Key Biscayne site will never be Wimbledon; nothing will. The question is, will Wimbledon ever be as comfortable and spacious for mere rubbernecking fans as this one?

Likewise, because of the Buchholzes' influence with key planners at Metro-Dade, no major sports facility has fit so unintrusively into South Florida's environment.

Maybe most importantly, none except for privately built former Joe Robbie Stadium has been less of a drag on the public treasury. Metro-Dade spent around $22 million building it. The tourney is paying back that investment at the rate of around $700,000 a year, and, by the way, why couldn't Marlins owner John Henry and the city of Miami and Metro-Dade County try to work out something along these lines on a baseball stadium?

I also liked what Cliff Buchholz said during his induction. ``The quality of the game has never been what it is today,'' he said, ``especially on the women's side.''

So true. When has tennis flashed a finer phalanx of female talent than Martina Hingis, Lindsay Davenport, Serena Williams (even temporarily without her injury-idled sister, Venus), Conchita Martinez, Monica Seles and Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario?

Not only that, a large troupe of female tennis players is deeply immersed in something immeasurably more significant than tennis.

Charity.

Graf works ceaselessly with Children of Tomorrow, an organization to aid youth traumatized by war. Hingis gives time, energy and money to the World Health Organization. Davenport has lent herself to more causes than there is space to record. The Williamses have made significant contributions to inner-city minorities. Sanchez-Vicario was a leader in the tournament's Feed the Children drive.