Argentina was a clear favorite before the Davis Cup final against Spain, because of many reasons. First of all, Spanish No. 1 in the world, Rafael Nadal had to withdraw from the final due to injury, moreover the two best currently Argentinian players, David Nalbandian and Juan Martin del Potro had been very successful autumn, playing indoor tournaments (Davis Cup final in 2008, was also played indoor, in Mar del Plata), finally Argentina hasn’t lost on the home soil for 10 years.
In the first rubber on Friday, as anticipated, David Nalbandian without problems overcame 6-3 6-2 6-3 David Ferrer who has been out of form for a few months. Nalbandian lost his serve twice but from first to the last point of the match dictating the conditions on the court. “I don’t think it was one of my best matches, but I played very well” said Nalbandian.
Feliciano Lopez leveled the tie, after 4-6 7-6 7-6 6-3 win over Juan Martin del Potro. The young Argentinian served 25 aces (the most in career so far), didn’t lose a service game in the first three sets but couldn’t prevail in the tie-breaks which lost 2-7 and 4-7, despite 4:2 up in the second one. Lopez has won 12 tie-breaks in a row, and it’s the best result this year (Andy Roddick is a record holder in this category, since last year with 18 cosecutive wins in the tie-breaks). “When I won the second tiebreak, I had a great injection of hope,” said Lopez. “In the last set, he didn’t look 100 per cent fit” – at 2:3 down in the fourth set, Del Potro started to stagger because of a strain in his thigh. After medical time-out lost his serve and it was crucial point not only for that match but for the whole Davis Cup final.
Argentinian doubles is the weakest link in the team, but David Nalbanian and Agustin Calleri were very close on Satrurday to lead 2-1 in sets against duo Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco who are very experienced in tigh Davis Cup matches, and are dangerous for the best doubles teams in the world. At 1-1 in sets, the Spaniards had wasted set point on Verdasco’s serve at 5:1, and later found themselves at 1:5 down in the tie-break! Nalbandian served a double fault in that moment, began to argue with the chair umpire, and completely lost the concetration. The Spaniards won another 5 points what gave them the set and the fourth set easily, albeit they wasted double match point on Verdasco’s serve in the 7th game. Final score: 5-7 7-5 7-6 6-3 for the left-handed Spaniards.
In the first rubber on Sunday, team captains, Alberto Mancini (Argentina) and Emilio Sanchez (Spain) decided to change nominal players. Jose Acasuso had to replace injured Juan Martin del Potro and Fernando Verdasco replaced David Ferrer.
“When Ferrer found out he was not playing, he took it well,” said Sanchez. “He immediately offered his support to Fernando which helped him come out on court.”
It was just second encounter of these two players but first indoor. After dropping the first set 3-6, Acasuso won second and third set, despite losing his service games twice in both sets, to give the hope for the loud Argentinian spctators. Unfortunately for them, “Chucho” lost his serve at 2:3 down in the fourth set. In the next game the Argentinian had double break point but wasted chances, his last in the match. After the end of the fourth set, Acasuso took a medical time-out because of abdominal strain. Fifth set was one-sided, Verdasco quickly raced to a 4:0 lead and converted third match point with his best stroke – forehand down the line to win almost four-hour match 6-3 6-7 4-6 6-3 6-1.
“I was more relaxed after the fourth set,” said Verdasco who fulfilled his childhood dream of winning Davis Cup for Spain. “I understood we needed tactics to win the match and I realised that he was tired so I took advantage of making him run.”
Acasuso as the first player in history has lost twice decisive rubber in Davis Cup final, two years ago he was beaten by Marat Safin the the fifth rubber of the final between Russian and Argentina in Moscow. In turn, Fernando Verdasco has been 25th player in the Open Era who won decisive rubber in Davis Cup final, only four players have won that final match twice (Stan Smith, John McEnroe, Pat Cash and Mark Phiippoussis).
Spain has won Davis Cup for the third time in six final appearances (lost finals in 1965, 1967 and 2003, losing to Australia on all three occasions), has triumphed every four years with different squad in the finals on each occasion since lifting the trophy for the first time in 2000 with victory on clay in Barcelona over Australia (Juan Carlos Ferrero, Albert Costa played in singles, Alex Corretja, Juan Balcells in doubles); it defeated the USA on its favored clay in Seville in 2004 (Rafael Nadal, Carlos Moya in singles, Juan Carlos Ferrero and Tommy Robredo in doubles). In 2008 beside Ferrer, Verdasco and Lopez, Marcel Granollers (a substitute of Nadal) was the fourth member of the winning team.
Spain d. Argentina 3-1 at Mar del Plata, Argentina: Hard (Indoor)
David Ferrer (ESP) l. David Nalbandian (ARG) 3-6 2-6 3-6
Feliciano Lopez (ESP) d. Juan Martin del Potro (ARG) 4-6 7-6(2) 7-6(4) 6-3
Feliciano Lopez/Fernando Verdasco (ESP) d. Agustin Calleri/David Nalbandian (ARG) 5-7 7-5 7-6(5) 6-3
Fernando Verdasco (ESP) d. Jose Acasuso (ARG) 6-3 6-7(3) 4-6 6-3 6-1
Feliciano Lopez (ESP) vs. David Nalbandian (ARG) Not Played
Jose Acasuso
Mondays With Bob Greene: It's the most exciting victory of my life
STARS
Dmitry Tursunov beat Karol Beck 6-4 6-3 to win the IPP Open in Helsinki, Finland
Caroline Wozniacki won the Nordea Danish Open, beating Sofia Arvidsson 6-2 6-1 in Odense, Denmark
Jim Courier beat Stefan Edberg 6-3 6-4 to win the Legends “Rock” Dubai Championships in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.
DAVIS CUP
David Nalbandian (Argentina) beat David Ferrer (Spain) 6-3 6-2 6-3
Feliciano Lopez (Spain) beat Juan Martin del Potro (Argentina) 4-6 7-6 (2) 7-6 (4) 6-3
Feliciana Lopez and Fernando Verdasco (Spain) beat Agustin Calleri and David Nalbandian (Argentina) 5-7 7-5 7-6 (5) 6-3
Fernando Verdasco (Spain) beat Jose Acasuso (Argentina) 6-3 6-7 (3) 4-6 6-3 6-1
SAYINGS
“It’s the most exciting victory of my life. Playing for my country, against the best players, it’s a dream.” – Fernando Verdasco, after winning the clinching point to give Spain its third Davis Cup title.
“I was prepared for the match, but Verdasco played very well in the fourth and fifth sets. He started serving better and deserves a lot of credit for this win.” – Jose Acasuso, after losing decisive match to Fernando Verdasco
“When you lose such an important player like Juan Martin, it opens a big hole in the team. After that, things got complicated for us.” – Alberto Mancini, Argentina Davis Cup captain.
“I have to remember Rafael Nadal because we played the Davis Cup final thanks to him.” -Verdasco, honoring the man who won two singles matches in the semifinals against the United States.
“Nadal gave us several victories, and thanks to him we are here. But the players who are here are the ones who deserve all the credit now.” – Emilio Sanchez Vicario, Spain’s Davis Cup captain.
“This is a great finish to a great year. Dubai is a fantastic place for me, and for all the players, to end up the season.” – Jim Courier.
“We get our grounds back and then we can decide what we do with it and be in charge of our own destiny, while it secures investment in British tennis for the next 40 years until 2053.” – Tim Phillips, on Wimbledon paying USD $83 million to gain total control of the All England Club.
“Carole and I first met when we were both 12 years old and remained lifelong friends. More than any other person, Carole worked tirelessly behind the scenes to be the driving force and influential leader of Fed Cup, the international women’s tennis team competition.” – Billie Jean King, about Carole Graebner, who died at the age of 65.
SPAIN SI SI
So what if the world’s number one player, Rafael Nadal, is missing. Spain still won its third Davis Cup by besting Argentina 3-1 in the best-of-five international competition. The winning point came on the first “reverse singles” when Fernando Verdasco outlasted Jose Acasuso 6-3 6-7 (3) 4-6 6-3 6-1 before a boisterous crowd in Mar Del Plata, Argentina. It was a battle of replacements as Verdasco had replaced David Ferrer for Spain and Acasuso was a replacement for the injured Juan Martin de Potro. Feliciano Lopez had rallied to give Spain its first point by upsetting del Potro 4-6 7-6 (2) 7-6 (4) 6-3, then teamed with Verdasco to win the doubles, besting Agustin Calleri and David Nalbandian 5-7 7-5 7-6 (5) 6-3. It was the first time Spain had won a Davis Cup title on the road. Playing on home courts, Spain beat Australia in 2000 and the United States in 2004.
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STILL WINLESS
For Jose Acasuso, losing the decisive match to give Spain the Davis Cup title was doubly devastating. The Argentine became the first man to lose two decisive five-set matches in Davis Cup finals, having also lost to Marat Safin in five sets in 2006 as Russia beat Argentina for the title. In the fourth set of the match against Spain, the trainer came onto court to work on Acasuso’s abdominal strain. “There was a lot of sadness in the locker room after the loss,” Acasuso said, “and the fact that three of the four of us lost to Russia two years ago means that the pain was double.”
STRAIGHT TO JAIL
Jimmy Connors was arrested at a University of California Santa Barbara basketball game when he refused to move on after being instructed to do so by police officers. An eight-time Grand Slam tournament champion, Connors refused to leave an area near the entrance of the Thunderdome following a confrontation, according to police. The tennis great was arrested at the beginning of the game and was taken to the Santa Barbara County jail where he was booked and released.
SUCCESS AT HOME
Caroline Wozniacki’s return home ended in triumph. Denmark’s top player won the Nordea Danish Open by defeating Sweden’s Sofia Arvidsson 6-2, 6-1. “I played incredibly stable and pushed her around the court, just as I had planned,” Wozniacki said. “Therefore, she never really got started. So I win the fight, and since it was on my home ground, I am obviously more than happy.” Ranked 12th in the world, Wozniacki was the highest ranked player ever to play an International Tennis Federation (ITF) Women’s Circuit event. It was the first USD $100,000 women’s tournament played in Denmark.
STEFANKI ON BOARD
Andy Roddick has a new coach. The former world number one player announced on his website that he has hired Larry Stefanki, who has previously coached John McEnroe, Marcelo Rios, Yevgeny Kafelnikov, Tim Henman and Fernando Gonzalez. Under Stefani’s guidance, both Rios and Kafelnikov reached the world number one ranking. Roddick has been without a coach since splitting from Jimmy Connors.
SEEKING OWN DESTINY
Wimbledon is buying back its own club. Organizers of the grass court Grand Slam tournament will pay USD $83 million to regain total control of the All England Club, buying back the 50 percent it gave away in 1934. The money will be paid to Britain’s Lawn Tennis Association after the existing agreement expires. Under the 40-year deal, the All England Club will keep 10 percent of the profits instead of giving it all to the LTA, the governing body of British tennis. This year’s tournament generated a profit of USD $39 million.
SPOTLIGHT ON VILAS
Guillermo Vilas is this year’s recipient of the Davis Cup Award of Excellence. The International Tennis Hall of Fame (ITHF) and the International Tennis Federation (ITF) presented the award to Vilas during the Davis Cup final between Spain and Argentina in Mar del Plata, Argentina. ITF president Francesco Ricci Bitti presented the award to Vilas with past award recipients Neale Fraser (2001), Pierre Darmon (2002) and Manolo Santana (2004) in attendance. Vilas holds the Argentinean Davis Cup record for most total wins (57), most singles wins (45), most doubles wins (12), most ties played (29), most years played (14) and best doubles team, with Jose-Luis Clerc. Born in Mar del Plata in 1952, the left-hander is credited with being the first Argentine to win a Grand Slam tournament singles (Roland Garros in 1977) and the first Argentine to be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame (1991). He also won the last US Open to be played at Forest Hills in 1977.
SENIOR CHAMP
Jim Courier closed out the 2008 Outback Champions Series season in style by capturing the Emirates NBD The Legends “Rock” Dubai Championships. Courier beat Stefan Edberg 6-3, 6-4 to win his fourth tournament title of the year on the tennis circuit for champion tennis players age 30 and over. He also won titles this year in Grand Cayman, Charlotte and Dallas, was finished the 2008 Outback Champions Series as its number one player in the Stanford Champions Rankings. Counting his Stanford Financial Group bonus, Courier won USD $404,000 in prize money this year.
STARS OF OLD
BlackRock Tour of Champions stars John McEnroe and Bjorn Borg joined up with Roger Federer and James Blake for a series of exhibition matches in Macao, China. Federer bested Blake 6-4 6-4 and Borg edged McEnroe in a one-set clash 7-6 before the two Americans teamed up to beat Borg and Federer 10-7 in a single Champions’ Tiebreak.
SCHOLAR-ATHLETE
Julia Parker Goyer, a Duke University graduate and tennis player, was among 32 Americans chosen as a Rhodes Scholar. A native of Birmingham, Alabama, Goyer graduated with a psychology major and neuroscience minor in May 2007. She will pursue a masters of science in comparative and international education at Oxford University in England. After making trips to Vietnam and Belize in 2007, Goyer founded the Coach for College program, which sends student-athletes to teach middle schoolers in rural areas of developing countries.
SAD NEWS
Carole Caldwell Graebner, who won doubles titles at the US and Australian Championships in the 1960s, is dead. She was 65. The top-ranked doubles player in the United States in 1963, Graebner teamed with Nancy Richey to win the 1965 US Championships, now the US Open, and the 1966 Australian Championships, now the Australian Open. She reached the US Championships women’s singles final in 1964, losing to Brazil’s Maria Bueno. Graebner was a member of the inaugural 1963 US Fed Cup team, and played college tennis alongside Billie Jean King at California State University at Los Angeles. She later served as United States Tennis Association (USTA) chair of the Fed Cup committee, and was a vice president of Tennis Week magazine and a radio and television commentator. She is survived by a daughter, Cameron Graebner Mark; a son, Clark Edward Graebner Jr.; and four grandchildren.
SHARED PERFORMANCES
Helsinki: Lukasz Kubot and Oliver Marach beat Eric Butorac and Lovro Zovko 6-7 (2) 7-6 (7) 10-6 (match tiebreak)
Odense: Sarah Borwell and Courtney Nagle beat Gabriela Chmelinova and Mervana Jugic-Salkic 6-4 6-4
SITES TO SURF
ATP: www.atptennis.com
WTA Tour: www.sonyericssonwtatour.com
ITF: www.itftennis.com
Why Is Nadal So Good On Clay, Grass And Hard Courts?
The King of Clay, Rafael Nadal is arguably the greatest to ever play the game on the red clay. Why is he so good and why has he been able to carry his success over to other surfaces?
Nadal’s first advantage is that he is a lefty which helps greatly as it matches his strength – his forehand – up against most players’ weakness – their backhand. Even if his opponent has a great backhand on the clay they are hitting off balance and above there shoulders too often to be as aggressive as they would be on a faster surface with lower bounces.
Nadal’s second advantage is the incredible amount of spin that he generates off of his forehand wing – this makes timing very difficult for his opponents. They are constantly having to take the ball on the rise to hold there position on the court. Nadal’s court coverage, foot speed andknowledge of how to construct points on the clay are a huge advantage. He has the patience and the killer instinct to wait for the right opportunity to force an error from his opponent or to hit a winner while inside the baseline.
Nadal has the ability to work/construct the point on clay to where his winning shot is most likely his easiest shot of the point as his opponent is either so far out of position or too tired to even try to get to the next shot. This ability is what has allowed him to translate his success to other surfaces. You may be asking why can’t players like Tommy Robredo, Nicolas Almagro, Jose Acasuso, Gael Monfils do the same as they are born and breed clay courters with great knowledge of how to play and construct points. The reason is that most clay courters are either incredible movers who chase everything down and wear their opponents down or they are great at constructing points on the clay – which wins them easy points.
Nadal has the ability to not only do the above but he is able to move into the court and muscle the ball that he has taking on the rise and then move in behind it to finish the point off with a volley. He is comfortable doing this on surfaces other than clay where your staple clay courters try to play clay court tennis on hard and grass courts.
I would like to see Nadal take a nice long break after Wimbledon to heal his body and knees which will make him fit and strong for the hard court season as I believe he would be a great player on the hard courts if he was able to play select events and stay healthy. If Nadal was able to have a great end of year and not fade away like he has done in the last two years then watch out. He would be a serious contender at the Australian Open if he didn’t have to take December to heal but instead to train.
VIVA RAFA!
French Open Preparation Continues
As we begin the last big tournaments on the men’s and women’s tours this week before the French Open, both Rafael Nadal and Justine Henin appears to have hit a bump in the road as they prepare to defend their Roland Garros titles from a year ago. Nadal was knocked off by unseeded Juan-Carlos Ferrero in the second round in Rome, while Henin was defeated in the third round by upstart Dinara Safina in Berlin. This is certainly not the confidence boost either player was hoping for as we now sit just two weeks away from the biggest clay court tournament of the year. While Nadal gets a shot at redemption this week at the Hamburg Masters, Henin has pulled out of the WTA tournament in Rome. Lets now look at the tournaments coming up this week as the players check to see where their clay court games now stand.
On the men’s side, the Masters Series event in Hamburg should be very interesting considering the recent stumbles of both Federer and Nadal. For Nadal, his early defeat in Rome could have been a sign that the young Spaniard needed a break. I’ll never understand who plans his schedule, but a lesson in time management may be in order. If Nadal does not take the time to recover between tournaments, he is putting his health and future success on the tour in jeopardy. Expect him to bounce back especially with the less than challenging draw he has received.
Returning to Hamburg will hopefully be the jump start Roger Federer has been waiting for in 2008. Still without a Masters Series title to his name this year, Federer missed a great opportunity last week in Rome by falling to Radek “the Worm” Stepanek. He won the Hamburg tournament last year, but came in with a much bigger head of steam. Without a strong showing here, I would say his chances at finally winning Roland Garros are slim indeed. He shouldn’t be challenged until meeting David Ferrer in the quarters. Even then, he has the advantage of being seeded first and not meeting Nadal or Djokovic until the finals.
The rest of the field should produce some great clay court match-ups. I particularly like seeing some heavyweight clay court players face each other in round one, such as Juan Monaco/ Filipo Volandri and Nicolas Alamgro/Jose Acasuso. This tournament usually provides us with some upsets and surprise quarterfinalists, and I would not be shocked if that held true this year. Watch for Marcel Granollers to perhaps make a splash in his section of the draw. Already a winner on clay in Houston, Texas earlier this year, he came through the qualifying section as the top seed and enters with a couple of wins under his belt already at this venue. My semifinal picks, include Davydenko against Federer and then Nadal against Djokovic or Robredo. Djokovic might be tired after a full week of tennis, and Robredo is the only other active player in this draw to have hoisted the trophy before in Hamburg
On the WTA Tour, expect less upsets as the women take to the courts in Rome. Last week’s final of Dinara Safina vs Elena Dementieva was certainly not one I would have predicted, and the top players should get back to business this time around. I wouldn’t count on Safina continuing her impressive form of late, where she knocked off three top 10 players in the world in Berlin. She may be tired, and somewhat less focused after such an improbable and exciting week. She also has the misfortune of having to face a solid player in Victoria Azarenka in round one, and then likely Ana Ivanovic in round three.
Past champions in Rome who are back once again include Jelena Jankovic and the Williams sisters. Noticeably absent from the draw are Amelie Mauresmo who is battling a rib injury and Justin Henin. Without serious match play leading up to her home tournament at Roland Garros, it appears another year will pass with Mauresmo disappointing the French fans. As for Henin, she must feel that a week off will benefit her more as she prepares her title defense. My semifinal picks here in Rome would be Jankovic vs Sharapova, who has an easy path to the final four and on the other side Ivanovic vs Serena Williams who has had quite a year thus far.
If you’re looking for a preview of who to watch at the French Open this year, keep your eyes open for this week’s results. Players on both tours will be looking to hit their stride as the clay court season edges closer to its culmination in Paris.
Monte Carlo Royalty
Trophy Watch: A lady on a Harley
Vroom: Russian Maria Sharapova proved that her Australian Open title was no joke, backing it up with her second title of the year at the $2.5 million Qatar Total Open. The Under Armour of opponent Vera Zvonareva was no match for Masha — she took Vera out 6-1, 2-6, 6-0.
Vera takes home a nice trophy.
The men: Andy Roddick — who looks a little… chubby? weathered? (Does he look different to anyone else? Is it facial hair?) — continued to wow the San Jose crowd with a winning performance, besting Radek Stepanek 6-4, 7-5 in the final. (FYI, Andy’s won this event twice before, and made the semis two other times.)
Meanwhile, David Nalbandian‘s back troubles disappeared this week during the Copa Telmex in Buenos Aires. He beat compatriot Jose Acasuso 3-6,7-6 and 6-4. I’m soooo ready for the next Yonex colorway. Yellow and red are too intense for the clay. Unless you’re Guga Kuerten.
In Rotterdam, Michael Llodra and his mouth continue to build on their early-season confidence with a second title in 2008. Llodra beat Robin Soderling 6-7 (3), 6-3, 7-6(4).
And this streaker, who made a statement at the Rotterdam final, is exactly why I am not vegan. Improper nutrition would lead me to do redundant things like writing “Vegan Streaker” on myself — as if the crowd could confuse me as a linesman. When he gets out of jail, can someone get him some beef?