The most surprising part of Benjamin Becker’s breakthrough performance at the U.S. Open was that so many people were surprised.

But certainly Fernando Verdasco wasn’t among them.

The 26th-ranked player in the world saw enough of Becker two months ago in a knock-down, drag-out five-setter at Wimbledon to know that facing him on hardcourts would be disastrous for some unsuspecting seed.

Likewise No. 37 Juan Ignacio Chela of Argentina, who lost to Becker in the first round at the All-England Club in the 25-year-old German’s Grand Slam debut.

Not to mention Baylor coach Matt Knoll, who for six years told anyone who’d listen that Becker could make it really, really big in pro tennis. But that’s about it, apart from friends, family and former Baylor teammates.

Becker himself is sort of on the fence. It’s not as if the three-time all-American has no confidence. It’s just that his considerable talent has always run neck-and-neck with his humility.

“You know me, I’m always looking at the dark side,” Becker said Monday night after Andy Roddick played a practically perfect match to knock him out in the fourth round, 6-3, 6-4, 6-3. “Volandri was a clay-courter, Grosjean had no rest, and Agassi was hurt. I think I had good timing. But that’s just the way I am.”

He has that in common with the tennis media. Hardly a story was written or taped in the run-up to his third-rounder against Agassi that didn’t suggest, implicitly or otherwise, that it was a little flukish for a player ranked 112th in the world to share the stage with American tennis’ only remaining icon.

Funny thing about the ATP rankings, though. The list is not a snapshot, but a year-long time exposure. It reflects not necessarily the best players in the world at a given moment, but the most consistent over a 12-month period.

Tennis is a meritocracy. No matter how good you are, you don’t get to play Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal right out of the gate. With very few exceptions, players have to earn the right to play ATP Tour events by winning in Futures and Challenger events, tennis’ “minor leagues.”

A year ago today, Becker had only two main-draw victories, about $300 in career earnings and was unranked on the ATP computer. When the new numbers come out Monday, he’ll be up to about No. 75. And his $72,000 Open payday will boost his career total to about $175,000.

Though he has won five singles titles and made the finals of three other Challenger events this year, more than $100,000 of that total came at Wimbledon and Flushing Meadows.

No player currently on tour and few in memory have risen that far, that fast. And certainly none who spent four years in college.

In short, Becker has paid his dues.

CBS analyst John McEnroe had a few chippy remarks during the nationally televised matches with Agassi and Roddick, but he was clearly impressed by Becker’s poise, professionalism and, mostly, his game.

“We’ll see if he can follow up on this success,” he said Monday when it became apparent that Becker didn’t have the goods to beat Roddick on this day. “Maybe break into the Top 50 or 40.”

Knoll, for one, expects a lot more than that.

“I’m absolutely not surprised,” he said. “I’m honestly a little disappointed. Don’t get me wrong — winning six matches at this tournament, playing twice in the stadium on national television and dealing with all the attention was a great step for him.

“But he needs to win these tournaments. I think he’s capable of winning them. I said that to (former BU standout) Benedikt Dorsch, and he said I was being unrealistic. And maybe I am.”

Certainly based upon Roddick’s Monday performance, which establishes him as a major threat to both Nadal in the semis and Federer in the final.

Roddick, whose best serve is at least 15 miles per hour faster than any player left in the draw, made 76 percent of his first serves.

Becker, who came in having won more points on opponents’ first serves than any player in the field, managed only seven out of 53 Monday and 13 overall in 14 service games.

And that wasn’t even Roddick’s best performance of the tournament. In the second round against Denmark’s Kristian Pless, he served 77 percent and lost only 11 points in 15 service games plus a tiebreaker, including 10 love games.

“I really thought we had a chance, but if he’s going to serve 76 percent, it’s tough,” Knoll said. “We never even got a sniff on his serve. The one time we got to 30, he hit three aces.”

Becker conceded that Sunday’s emotional victory over Agassi before 23,000 fans in Arthur Ashe Stadium probably affected his play on Monday.

“The whole thing was really, really trying,” he said. “I felt really bad afterwards, almost sick. ... If yesterday hadn’t happened the way it did, today would have been different for sure. Not to use that as an excuse, but I was definitely disappointed that I performed the way I did.”

He called the week a “once-in-a-lifetime experience,” but was careful to point out that he meant the win over Agassi in the six-time Grand Slam champion’s final match.

Back home, that victory prompted a raucous celebration. As raucous as things get, anyway, in Orscholz, Germany.

“They were driving through the village and honking their carhorns,” Becker laughed. “It was as if Germany had won the World Cup. Or so I heard.”

Becker will take the next two weeks off before flying to the Far East to play ATP events in Bangkok and possibly Tokyo at the end of the month.

Now a lock for a berth in the Australian Open, he could meet McEnroe’s Top 50 challenge — and then some — with a strong performance in the European hardcourt season this fall.

“I learned a lot this week,” he said. “Honestly, I haven’t really had a lot of time to digest it all. ... But I know I’m right there.”