Hopman Cup officials have mounted a last-chance worldwide search for a replacement for Tommy Robredo after the Spanish veteran withdrew from the event due to an arm injury, leaving the pre-Australian tournament short a man.( and on the wrong side of the country for a warm up event )
The withdrawal a day before the start of the eight-nation mixed team tournament puts organizers in a jam for which they might have to engineer a creative solution if no other Spanish man is available. The exhibition has not been shy in the past about bending the rules to make sure a match gets to court, with the possibility good that someone other than a Spaniard could well replace Robredo in the field.
Still onsite is Anabel Medina Garrigues, who won the title a year ago for Spain over Serbia alongside Fernando Verdasco. Robredo played on the 2010 Spanish championship side with Maria Jose Martinez Sanchez as his partner.
Robredo, ranked 18th, last played in early October in Shanghai, withdrawing hurt from his second-round match against Fabio Fognini, who is representing Italy at this edition in Perth.
Spain is due to open play on Sunday morning at the Perth arena against the Czech Republic featuring Tomas Berdych and Petra Kvitova. The pre-Australian Open event starts on Saturday as Poland plays Italy and Canada takes on host Australia. Sure sounds like tourney director “killa” Pauly Kilderry has his hands full.
Topics: 10sballs.com, Anabel Medina Garrigues, Australian Open, Fabio Fognini, Fernando Verdasco, Hopman Cup, Italy, María José Martínez Sánchez, Pauly Kilderry, Perth, Petra Kvitova, Serbia, Spain, Tennis, Tennis News, Tomas Berdych, Tommy Robredo