Got it... after more googling i could find solution for myself. The new Firewall Feature was the culprit.
Using the portal just click on the
Firewall Settings tab. From there you can either check the box to
Allow Microsoft Services access to this server which will enable all Windows Azure Web and Worker Roles to access your server.
Additionally, you can click the Add Record button and add your current IP address which is shown in the dialog box.
These updated rules may take up to 5 minutes for the change to take affect so please be patient.