Wimbledon 2011 Results: No. 8 Andy Roddick Upset In Straight Sets By Feliciano Lopez

Feliciano Lopez def. No. 8 Andy Roddick 7-6(2), 7-6(2), 6-4. Another year, another bitter disappointment for Andy Roddick at Wimbledon.

Roddick was beaten in straight sets on Centre Court in straight sets by unseeded (but hardly unknown) Spaniard Feliciano Lopez, falling 7-6(2), 7-6(2), 6-4. Not only had Roddick beaten Lopez in each of their previous seven meetings, he beat Lopez on grass earlier this month at Queen’s Club.

Though that track record would make this match seem like a great failure for Roddick, this match was far less about his poor play and more about Lopez’s strong play, especially his serve. Lopez hit 28 aces, and only 7 unforced errors. He was able to pass Roddick with relative ease off both his forehand and backhand, taking away any court positioning advantage Roddick would have had.

This is Roddick’s second straight loss at Wimbledon (and third in four years) before the quarterfinals to an unseeded player. While Lopez is nowhere near as shocking an opponent to fall to as Lu Yen-Hsun was last year, it’s still a defeat that will stick in Roddick’s craw for a long, long time. His opponents in the upcoming American hard court swing (and perhaps Lopez himself in a Davis Cup match before that) better look out, because Roddick is going to have a lot of frustration to take out on the ball.

I do still believe that Roddick is capable of winning a slam later in his career, but a lot of things are going to have to break his way.

With Roddick’s exit, the only Americans remaining in the Gentlemen’s Singles draw are No. 10 Mardy Fish and Alex Bogomolov, Jr.

Stay tuned to this StoryStream for more results from Day 5 of Wimbledon 2011. Get live scores at the tournament’s official website, and watch matches online for free on ESPN3.