NEW YORK (AP)—Andy Roddick held on to avoid a first-round upset at the U.S. Open, beating 96th-ranked Michael Russell 6-2, 6-4, 4-6, 7-5 on Wednesday night.
The 21st-seeded Roddick, who won the 2003 U.S. Open, had a 13-0 edge in aces in the all-American matchup.
After breezing through the first two sets, Roddick began to run into trouble in the third, and then fell behind by a break in the fourth. But Roddick broke right back to even that set at 3-all.
Struggling with various injuries, former No. 1 Roddick is having a tough season, and his ranking dropped outside the top 20 for the first time in a decade.
Russell fell to 0-7 at Flushing Meadows.
Roddick, who turned 29 on Tuesday, will face 18-year-old Jack Sock of the United States next.