U.S. Davis Cup team still confident
Posted on September 18, 2008
Filed Under Davis Cup
The defending champion United States takes on a strong Spanish team this weekend in the Davis Cup semifinal. The U.S. team, who beat Russia to win the title last year, is depleted by the loss of two first-choice players.Last week, ninth-ranked James Blake withdrew from the US squad, citing exhaustion, and was replaced by the 20-year-old Sam Querrey, ranked 39, a Davis Cup rookie. Also, the formidable Bryan brothers doubles tandem has been split up for this week, as Bob is nursing a shoulder injury. He has an inflamed left shoulder that required a cortisone injection. The doubles star Bob Bryan, has been replaced on the team by Mardy Fish for the best-of-five tie in Madrid. The mighty twin Bryan brothers are 14-2 together in Davis Cup play and helped the U.S. win its first title in 12 years last year.The favored Spaniards will seek to repeat their 2004 victory over the U.S. in Seville and will be led by Wimbledon, four-time French Open and Olympic champion Rafael Nadal, who dethroned Roger Federer from the top spot in men’s tennis.
Spanish captain Emilio Sanchez Vicario also has world no. 5 at his disposal. 15th-ranked Fernando Verdasco and Feliciano Lopez, ranked 37, will play the doubles against Mike Bryan and Mardy Fish.
The Americans will be relying on big-server Andy Roddick to nick a point off world number one Rafael Nadal, who has never lost a clay court singles matches in the Cup, or for 20-year-old Sam Querrey, ranked 39, to produce a minor miracle.
U.S. Davis Cup captain Patrick McEnroe remains confident his team can upset Spain: “We are the underdogs. Someone is going to have to pull off some big wins to get this one,” eight-time captain McEnroe told reporters. “But we are here because we think we can win.”
The matchup will be held from Friday through Sunday on a temporary clay court at Madrid’s Plaza de Toros Las Ventas.
“If we’ve got something on our side, it’s the altitude,” Querrey told Reuters after training in the 21,000-seater stadium. The venue favors the big-serving Americans in the thinner air of the capital at 660 meters above sea level.The Spain-USA winner will visit the Argentina-Russia victor in the final in November. The Argentines play host to the Russians this weekend.
The United States and Spain will meet for the ninth time in their history and for the fifth time since 2000. The Americans are 5-3 against Spain, winning the last meeting in a World Group quarterfinal last year in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Established in 1900, Davis Cup is the world’s largest annual international men’s team competition, with 127 nations competing this year. The U.S. leads all nations with 32 titles. The Americans beat a visiting Russian squad in last year’s finale in Portland.
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