After taking the first set and racing ahead 6-4 in the second set tiebreaker, Roddick dropped the set 8-6 in the tiebreaker behind aggressive play from Sela.
In the deciding set Roddick broke serve in the sixth game and finished the match with his 17th ace of the day.
“I wanted to stay in there and compete, even though he was the hot player for the majority of the day.
At the end of the day, a win is a win and I'm happy with that,” Roddick said.
In the women's final, top seeded Jelena Jankovic defeated fourth seeded Svetlana Kuznetsova of Russia 6-3, 6-2. For Jankovic the win made up for two loses: losing last year in the Beijing final and also losing last week to Kuznetsova in Tokyo.
“When I came on court I really was motivated and came out with a game plan, especially after playing her last week,” said Jankovic.
Jankovic moved to within 21 points of world number one Serena Williams of the USA in the WTA Tour rankings.
Williams, Jankovic, Wimbledon champion Venus Williams of the USA and Olympic silver medalist Dinara Safina of Russia all are scheduled to play next week at the WTA Tour tournament at Stuttgart, Germany. Jankovic could face Venus Williams in the semifinals, while Serena Williams and Jankovic could only meet in the final.
If Serena Williams loses early and Jankovic wins the Stuttgart title, Jankovic would replace Williams as the world number one after the tournament.
“I will work very hard in the offseason, trying to get stronger and fitter and trying to bring my tennis game to the next level,” Jankovic said. “Hopefully I can win a grand slam next year.”
