THE TennisReporters.net NEWSLETTER: WEDNESDAY, DECemBER 15, No. 108

The Roddick-Gilbert split: Andy didn't train hard enough for Brad
Gilbert, Roddick's dad clashed severely; Andy wants to call his own shots now

By Matthew Cronin, TennisReporters.net

Art Seitz

Andy Roddick reportedly decided to dump Brad Gilbert within the last few weeks.

Andy Roddick fired Brad Gilbert for a number of reasons: His coach didn't get along with his father, Jerry; he wants to call his own shots with a more low key coach; the two couldn't come to terms on his training schedule or a financial contract.

Sources close to Roddick and Gilbert told TennisReporters.net Wednesday that Roddick decided during the Davis Cup final to part ways with Gilbert, who coached him to the '03 US Open title and the No. 1 ranking. Gilbert was surprised by the move, but not completely stunned, given that he had asked Roddick to change his December schedule and focus more on training, rather than charity events and exhibitions.

While Andy did make the call on the firing himself, Gilbert and Roddick's father, Jerry, did clash repeatedly over money and Andy's schedule. Although Jerry Roddick isn't overly involved in Roddick's on-court style or tactics, sources say he involves himself in every other aspect of his son's career.

"You have to go through Jerry to get things done," the source said. "Brad didn't want to do that and that's understandable because he's the coach, but the reality is that Jerry is very important to Andy and he trusts him. If you can't get along with the family, it's hard to coach a player."

The 22-year-old Roddick has also matured to the point where he wants to be in charge of his on-court play. "Andy wants to call his own shots," the source said. "Brad had great input into his game and obviously knows what he talking about, but Andy has an idea of where he wants to take his game. He needs someone who's willing to listen to him and take more of a backseat approach at times."

GILBERT WANTED RODDICK TO GET TO WORK
Gilbert had working on nailing down a formal contract for the past year and a half, but had been unable to come to terms with Jerry. Moreover, sources say, he wanted Roddick to spend more time retooling his game and less time hanging out with his friends at exhibitions. This week, Roddick is on a bus tour with his close friends Mardy Fish and the Bryan brothers.

Fred Mullane/Camerawork USA

Brad Gilbert was one of the tour's craftiest players.

"Brad sees what improvements Andy needs to make and feels he has to be willing to take two steps back to take one step forward," the source said. "Andy's worked on making improvements, but he still has a long way to go. He can't make those changes if he's not around to work with Brad in the off-season."

Because of Roddick's exhibition schedule, Gilbert only had four days to work with Andy during the 2003 off-season.
At times, Roddick is said to be willing to learn, but he can also be a very stubborn. His penchant for playing too far behind the baseline has driven all of his coaches mad.

"He is stubborn, which works in his favor as a competitor because he can't stand losing, but also works against him because sometimes he ignores advice," a source said.

Roddick is the midst of trying to work out a contract with US Davis Cup coach Dean Goldfine, who used to coach Todd Martin. Goldfine is easy to get along with, but is also willing to offer strong opinions if he doesn't like what his player is doing.

While the fast-talking duo got along well when they first started working together in the summer of 2003, Roddick and Gilbert's relationship apparently deteriorated during the past six months. Gilbert prefers to be around his players constantly, while Roddick is at the age where he prefers to spend a fair amount of his off-court time with his friends and the woman he happens to be dating.

Sources have told TR.net that the reason that Andre Agassi split with Gilbert back in 2002 was because Agassi's wife, former No. 1 Steffi Graf, didn't like the fact that Gilbert was constantly around and wanted more input into Andre's daily schedule.

Because he helped bring Agassi and Roddick to No. 1, Gilbert has a fair amount of coaching possibilities available to him. Taylor Dent appears to be on the market, and Gilbert might also begin working again with 16-year-old Tatiana Golovin, who he briefly tutored in 2002 and part of 2003.