Aussies around the globe – Sam Stosur and Davis Cup

Written by: Global Chick on 18th September 2011

Aussies around the globe – Sam Stosur and Davis Cup |

Australia’s number one player Bernard Tomic started off the World Group playoffs at the Royal Sydney Golf Club on Friday with a win over more experienced World No. 19 Stanislas Wawrinka.

Switzerland turned up at the Royal Sydney Golf Club with two top 20 players Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka also nominated in the Swiss team were Stephane Bohli and Marco Chiudinelli. Selected to play for Australia last week were Bernard Tomic, Lleyton Hewitt, Chris Guccione and Matthew Ebden. Australia has not been in the World Group since 2007.

Pat Rafter and his team knew they had to try and win the matches against the Swiss No. 2 to have a slight chance to win this tie against Switzerland and get back into the World Group for the first time since 2007.

After Tomic’s win it was time for the much anticipated match of the weekend between two former world number ones Roger Federer and Lleyton Hewitt. The Australian has battled a foot injury this year and is still not back to his old form. It was World No.3 that came out on top winning in four sets.

Australia had a surprise win over Switzerland in the doubles rubber on Saturday. Lleyton Hewitt and Chris Guccione took out Roger Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka to take a 2-1 lead going into Sunday’s singles rubbers.

On Sunday Bernard Tomic played his hero Roger Federer in the reverse singles. Tomic broke Federer a couple of times and was leading in the second set. He also took the third set off Federer before the Swiss star found his rhythm again and took the match and levelled the tie 2-2.

It was now down to the match between Swiss No. 2 Stanislas Wawrinka and Australia’s No. 2 Lleyton Hewitt. The match was suspended yesterday and will be finished today (Monday). Switzerland leads 5-3 in the fifth set.

Newly crowned US Open Champion Samantha Stosur has revealed how her coach/friend David Taylor helped her to win the final over Serena Williams on Sunday last week. He gave her a lucky charm before the match something he has never done before. It was a yellow New York taxi toy car with the message, “I play like I must”. It’s a phrase frequently used by Taylor.

Stosur explained, “It means in pressure moments, you have to play like you must, not how you feel.”

I took the toy car in my bag during the match, I must put it with the replica US Open trophy when I finally get it.” She also added, “Winning a Grand Slam is unbelievable, but if it was ever to be an Australian Open that would be something else.

Stosur’s next tournament will be the Pan Pacific Open in Tokyo.

Some of the other Aussies were playing on the Challenger circuit last week. Carsten Ball went to Turkey to play in the American Express – Istanbul Challenger. The Aussie/American teamed up with German Andre Begemann and won the trophy in the doubles. The number four seeds overcame Gregoire Burquier and Yannick Mertens in the final. Ball’s singles campaign was not as successful. He lost in the first round to Irish wildcard James McGee 7-5 6-4.

South Australian Jordan Kerr partnered his old mate American Travis Parrott in the Istanbul doubles event. They were seeded number two but they didn’t get further than the second round where they lost to Denis Istomin and Konstantin Kravchuk.