Spain Hoping Their Weary Heroes Have One More Week End in Them

Written by: Staff on 1st December 2011

Spain Hoping Their Weary Heroes Have One More Week End in Them

Spanish tennis player Rafael Nadal serves a ball during a training session at La Cortuja Olympic stadium in Seville, southern Spain, on 30 November 2011. Spain will face Argentina from 02 to 04 December at their Davis Cup final. EPA/JULIO MUNOZ |

While Spanish captain Albert Costa’s main job is to motivate his weary warriors Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer into producing one last effort to push the nation to a fifth title this century, opposite number Tito Vasquez has rung the changes in his Argentina team.

Vasquez has chosen Juan Monaco instead of the vastly more experienced David Nalbandian for the initial round of singles and the world no.26 will be plunged straight into action against Rafael Nadal when play begins tomorrow in Seville.

Juan Martin Del Potro will then face David Ferrer with the well-tested doubles partnership of Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco carrying Spanish hopes against the untried duo of Nalbandian and Eduardo Schwank.

Monaco has a 5-7 overall record in Davis Cup and in the semi-final win over reigning champions Serbia in Belgrade was used in doubles alongside the now dropped Juan Ignacio Chela and then pushed into dead rubber action in the singles.

“It is going to be tough against such a good player as Rafa,” said Monaco who is one of Nadal’s closer friends on the ATP World Tour scene. “But it is a big challenge for me. We are very determined as a team to win the Davis Cup for the first time.”

Nadal was insistent the majority of his quotes about being tired and suffering a ‘loss of passion’ in last week’s ATP World Tour Finals in London were misinterpreted.

“I am fit and full of motivation and illusion to help my country and my friends to win the title again,” said Nadal who was beaten by both Roger Federer and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in London. “I haven’t had a day off, coming straight here and then practising immediately. But I am very ready.”

The widely held belief in Argentine circles is that Nalbandian is being held back to contest the second singles rubber if the final is still live on Sunday afternoon.

“This is very different for me because I am getting older,” said Nalbandian who has played just one doubles this match this year, on grass at the AEGON Championships at London’s Queen’s Club when he and Andy Roddick lost out to Argentina team-mate Del Potro and Radek Stepanek. “But this is the final and we want to win so I will give everything I have wherever asked.”

“DAILY TENNIS NEWS WIRE”

Topics: Argentina, Davis Cup, Ferrer, nadal, Spain