Roddick ready to put friendship on hold

Andy Roddick will put his friendship with Jurgen Melzer temporarily to one side when the pair clash in the third round at Wimbledon today.

Two-time finalist Roddick and Austrian left-hander Melzer have been friends for a decade, but that will be forgotten when they step out onto Centre Court looking to book a place in the last 16.

“I think a lot of him,” said Roddick, beaten in the final at the All England Club by Roger Federer in both 2004 and 2005.

“We’ve known each other probably 10 years now, going back to juniors. We kind of grew up together.

“We enjoy each other’s company a little bit. We’ve kind of developed a little bit of a friendship over the 10 years we’ve been on tour now.

“But to be professional you leave that kind of courtesy in the locker room when you go out on the court.”

Also in action today is 2002 champion Lleyton Hewitt, the Australian taking on Germany’s Philipp Petzschner on Court Two following his impressive victory over fifth seed Juan Martin del Potro in the second round.

Nikolay Davydenko and Tomas Berdych, 12th and 20th seeds respectively, clash on Court One, which is also the venue for Fernando Gonzalez to take on Juan Carlos Ferrero.