Davis Cup 2011: World Group, Spain vs. Belgium
Spain have been the dominating force at the Davis Cup in recent years. In addition to winning it in 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2009, they've made it to the finals 7 times in all, including a loss to Australia in 2003. Spain's talent pool is second to none currently. They have the most number of players in the top 100 out of any country in the world right now: 14 in all. These players include three World top 10ers, World no.1 Rafael Nadal, no.6 David Ferrer and no.9 Fernando Verdasco. It is this depth in their squad that has allowed Spain to field one of their strongest teams ever in the tournament.
Rafael Nadal is now fully fit. As such, he leads the Spanish effort to regain the cup they held as recently as 2 years ago. Nadal is talismanic for Spain; all the times Spain has triumphed in this tournament recently can be attributed in most part to his stellar performances. The 24-year-old has won his last 4 ties at the tournament in straight sets. His absence through injury last year definitely hampered Spain's bid as defending champions. This year though, no dark clouds in the form of fitness worries loom on the horizon. The world no.1 is healthy and he looks ready to win.
Joining Nadal is another man in golden form. David Ferrer recently made it to the semi-finals of the Australian Open. He has also won both the other tournaments he's participated in this year. Currently ranked no.6 on the world, he too has been instrumental in the recent Spanish victories. His performance at 2009's final rubber against the Czech republic was most impressive. The man from Javea will definitely look for a repeat of said performance here and now. If he does succeed in replicating the show, Spain will be fine with two players alone.
Fernando Verdasco is going through a bit of a rough patch. He's been kicked out of his last two tournaments in the first round. He is still the world no.9 though. On his day, Verdasco can give the best of the best a run for their money and he'll certainly be hoping for patriotism to inspire him to new heights. Whether or not he will feature heavily in this campaign is an important question though, overshadowed as he is by Nadal and Ferrer.
Feliciano Lopez rounds of the team representing Spain in this year's competition. The 29 year old is a veteran of the Davis Cup and his excellent show kept Spain afloat early on in the 2009 season when both Nadal and Verdasco had injury woes. The left-hander has a different game from most his compatriots, a fact that might help him unsettle most the opponents he meets here. Consequently, the Spainsh team is definitely the strongest one in contention during this year's tournament.
Their opponents, Belgium, are not well-known in the world of tennis. They currently have only one top 100 player on their roster, and his name is Xavier Malisse. Ranked a lowly 51st in the world, Malisse is a class apart from the stars of the Spanish contingent. His compatriot Oliver Rochus, is ranked 115th in the world while Steve Darcis and Ruben Bemelmans are ranked 129th and 144th in the world respectively.
If Malisse, Rochus and co. can pull off an upset here, they'll go down into the history books for sure. However, the Spanish team is a collection of stars par comparision all in form and all hungry for a trophy. As such, an upset seems unlikely.
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