Andy Roddick is ready to rock

Andy Roddick declared himself mentally and physically ready for his return to competition after a month off following his heartbreaking loss to Roger Federer in the Wimbledon final. The fifth-ranked US star will be back on the court today after a first-round bye at the 1.4 million-dollar ATP Washington Classic, having found perspective about the Swiss star’s historic marathon five-set victory.

“Heartbreaking for me, but at the same time not a lot of people get a chance to play for that title. That was not lost on me,” Roddick said Monday. “Was it the greatest loss I’ve had as far as afterward?... Yeah, that hurt. But at the same time it’s still a pretty good existence to play matches like that.”

Federer won his sixth Wimbledon title and career record 15th Grand Slam crown 5-7 7-6 (8/6) 7-6 (7/5) 3-6 16-14. Roddick pushed him for four hours and 16 minutes, holding 37 service games in a row before dropping the last in the July 5 epic. Asked how he got over the loss, Roddick replied, “I’ll keep you posted.”

Putting the defeat in perspective has proven elusive as Roddick, whose only Grand Slam title came at the 2003 US Open, sees himself little differently than before. “It changes daily. I don’t think I really understand,” Roddick said. “For me it’s probably not the same but I understand it might be a good story.

“I’ve been a pretty good player throughout my career regardless of what has taken place in the last six weeks.”

The only thing Roddick expects to linger from the thriller loss to Federer as he begins hard-court matches ahead of the US Open is the emotional lift brought by the entire Wimbledon fortnight’s work. “It does help my confidence going into the US Open that I was able to navigate my way through a major tournament,” Roddick said.

“I’m not going to come in expecting to pick up where I left off a month ago. It’s a process. This is the start of the process for the US Open. It would be presumptuous of me to expect that in my first match back after a month.”

Roddick, who turns 27 on the eve of the US Open, will play fellow American Robby Ginepri or Germany’s Benjamin Becker in his first match. Hot-handed US rival Sam Querrey, the champion Sunday at Los Angeles, could await after that.

Roddick has worked to keep his emotions in balance better than in the early days of his career, saying his normal evolution has played out before the world step by step. “I’ve pretty much been portrayed as every style thing you can be,” Roddick said. “After Wimbledon you are Andy Everyguy, who everybody is cheering for. I think the meat and potatoes of who I am hasn’t been covered yet.”