Roddick admits mixed feelings over Agassi

NEW YORK, Sep 4 (Reuters) Andy Roddick reached the US Open fourth round with a five-set win over big-hitting Spaniard Fernando Verdasco but the American's next opponent is a surprise.

Roddick, the 2003 Open champion, was on course to face Andre Agassi, one of his heroes, in the fourth round, only for the 36-year-old eight-times grand slam winner to be sent into retirement by German qualifier Benjamin Becker.

The 24-year-old Roddick said he had been torn about the prospects of facing Agassi.

''Obviously, you want to play against your idols, but then again you don't want to be the guy who shot Bambi,'' Roddick told reporters.

''It was a weird position to be in. There were so many mixed emotions because I knew if we'd both won, we'd play. There's the fan in me. There's the player in me.'' Roddick said there was an emotional scene in the locker room when Agassi came in following his defeat.

''He got a standing ovation from the players in the locker room when he walked in,'' Roddick said. ''It was a nice scene. He was hugging those who loved him.

''I just went up, and I shook his hand and I said, 'Thanks for teaching me.' He said, 'Good luck.''' Roddick said he watched most of the Agassi-Becker match and learned some things about the 25-year-old German, who was a national US college champion as a student at Baylor University in Texas.

''He serves out of his shoes,'' the American said of Becker, who had 27 aces against Agassi. ''He takes huge cuts. He looked like he returned pretty well.'' Roddick's match against Verdasco was tough physically as the 22-year-old lefthander struck powerfully from both wings, registering 78 winners against just 46 for Roddick.

But the 26th-ranked Spaniard also posted 65 unforced errors against 29 for the American, who prevailed 6-7 6-3 6-4 6-7 6-2.

''I feel like I got the best of Verdasco today,'' he said. ''I was fortunate.'' Roddick's match against Becker will bring the winner a berth in the quarter-finals, but it will not pack the emotional punch a showdown with Agassi would have.

''Most likely, if I would have won, then I probably would have broken down,'' he said. ''And if I would have lost, I would have probably broken down. It would have been a very tough match emotionally for me.'' Reuters DH GC0617