Andy Roddick has announced that fellow American Larry Stefanki will be his full-time coach on the ATP Tour, beginning in 2009.

The No. 8 player in the world had been working with Jimmy Connors until March of this season. Roddick fluctuated between No. 3 and No. 12 during his time with Connors, which began just prior to the U.S. Open in 2006. He dropped to 12^th shortly thereafter, but stormed back to third in the spring and summer of 2007.

Brad Gilbert, who is now mostly known as a commentator, was Roddick’s long-time coach as the bright young star really emerged as a professional. The highlight of their partnership, of course, came when Roddick won the 2003 U.S. Open title, which is still his only Grand Slam championship. That propelled Roddick to the No. 1 ranking in the world, which he assumed in November of 2003. He only held onto it, however, until February of the next year. With the ensuing dominance of Roger Federer and the emergence of Rafael Nadal, Roddick has never been back to the top spot.

Gilbert, meanwhile, was not quite as successful with Andy Murray, with whom he split at the end of 2007. Their time together was marked by injuries and Murray taking his on-court anger out on his coach; before points, after points, and sometimes even during points. Murray, of course, is now far more productive and far more mature under new coach Miles Maclagan.

Roddick’s brother John, who was already a full-time traveler with the Roddick camp, took over, but that experiment ended over the summer. Patrick McEnroe helped Roddick out at the U.S. Open, where the 2003 Open champion was on the brink of the semifinals before losing to Novak Djokovic, but it never went beyond that.

Stefanki’s illustrious coaching history includes stints with John McEnroe, Marcelo Rios, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, and most recently Fernando Gonzalez, with whom he just parted ways at the end of the 2008 ATP season. Both Rios and Kafelnikov reached No. 1 in the world under Stefanki’s tutelage.

The highlight of Stefanki’s latest tenure came at the Australian Open 2007, when Gonzo took the tennis world by steam in reach the final, where he lost to Federer. En route, Gonzalez decimated James Blake, Tommy Haas, and Rafael Nadal.

As a player, Stefanki’s career-high ranking was No. 35 in the world and he won one singles title and three doubles titles before retiring in 1988.

“The timing of this exciting new partnership provides the duo (Roddick and Stefanki) the majority of the off-season to prepare for 2009,” explained a statement on Roddick’s website.

The fact that they will have almost two full months to work together before the curtain opens on next season will tell us a lot about how things are going at the Australian Open 2009. Will Roddick’s game look any different? Will his backhand see noticeable improvement? Will he develop a net game to the extent that it can become a weapon?

If Roddick and Stefanki can hammer out those kinks in relatively short time, it could pay huge dividends at the Australian Open. While Roddick should have at least a few very good years left in him, he is 26 years old and at this point in his career has to be thinking about winning another Grand Slam (or two) and becoming No. 1 in the world again (it would take a small miracle for the latter to become a reality). In order to set himself up well for contending for Grand Slams, Roddick needs to bring his ranking up from No. 8. At that position, he is liable to play Federer, Nadal, Novak Djokovic, or Andy Murray as early as the quarterfinals. That of course, is not an ideal situation.

The Australian Open 2009 will be key for Roddick, not to mention an outstanding opportunity to gain ranking points. That’s because Roddick lost in the third round this year, in an absolutely epic five-set match with Philipp Kohlschreiber. If Roddick and Stefanki can hit it off right away and really be firing on all cylinders come January, it will set Roddick up well for not only the year’s first Grand Slam, but also for the entire season.

Only time can tell whether or not a coaching move is good one, but right now it’s hard to find any fault with this one. Roddick has been stuck in neutral, so he really has nothing to lose. He needs some pep in his step, and given his new coach’s track record, he just might get it.

Is Andy’s dream of becoming a serious contender again in a Grand Slam event over, or does he have one last chance at the upcoming 2009 Australian Open? He lost in the 3^rd. round to virtually unknown Kohlschreiber in 2008, which as well as being a bitter disappointment to him, also set him back for most of the season. It is a pattern of badly played matches against competitors that on paper he should beat with ease, that has haunted Andy since his meteoritic climb into the top ten six years ago. A position he has retained ever since. He possesses the fastest serve in tennis today, not necessarily the best service, and he has a forehand that is as good as that of any player on the tour. He’s fit, he works hard, he is well liked both on and off the court, and he has had some of the best coaches working in his camp. So wherein lies the problem?

Anybody who watches tennis knows just by looking at Andy on the court that he appears to be a nervous wreck. Maybe its just the way he is every day, but as he twitches his neck, or hoists his shirt up off his shoulders, or tugs on his hat, it is apparent that he is rushed, and far from relaxed. Maybe his engagement to swimsuit model Brooklyn Decker will help to calm him down, or at least provide an extra motivating presence.

After losing to Federer time and time again he did eventually beat him in 2008, but then a lot of players beat Federer in 2008. He also beat Nadal and Djokovic, but was badly beaten by Djokovic on his home court at the US Open in front of his thousands of raucous fans. He just competed in Barcelona against Spain in the Davis Cup where he was beaten in 5 sets by David Ferrer.

Does the American press expect too much from him? Just because he is the highest ranked American player, currently 9^th., is he expected to be another Sampras, or an Agassi or even a McEnroe? Could it be that this expectation of greatness from the outside apply so much pressure from within on Andy that he doesn’t even play up to his own capabilities all of the time. Maybe its like having Big Brother watching and criticizing. If he wins a regular tour event it is a non-news item, kind of counts for nothing anymore, he is expected to win the ‘Big’ one. After all, he did it once before. He has referred to this complex as the Neil Armstrong syndrome saying, “After you’ve been to the moon, what else is there?” Maybe the Australian Open will be his second Grand Slam win, or if it isn’t, will it be the end of Andy’s quest?