Davis Cup Final Tie Preview: Czech Republic vs. Spain
Spanish squad will visit Czech Republic for the final tie of the Davis Cup tournament that begins on 16th November at the O2 Arena, Prague. It will be a mind-startling contest between the defending champions Spain and
a very talented Czech side. Jaroslav Navratil is the captain of the Czech side that will feature the likes of the sixth ranked Tomas Berdych along with the 37th ranked Radek Stepanek. World number 84, Lukas Rosol, who registered an upset against
the former world number one, Rafael Nadal, in the second round of the Wimbledon Championships is kept as an alternate player along with 187th rank Ivo Minar.
On the other end of the court will the fifth ranked David Ferrer who will team up with the 11th ranked Nicolas Almagro. These two supreme athletes will be accompanied by the winners of the Barclays Association of Tennis
Professionals World Tour Finals, Marcel Granollers and Marc Lopez. Granollers is ranked 33 in the singles as well whilst his partner is the ninth best player in the doubles category. It will be a mind-startling contest for sure considering the experience and
talent enriched in all participants. Alex Corretja, the captain of Spanish team, believes that there squad is capable of holding on to the title if the Ferrer takes on the responsibility of winning both the singles Round Rubbers contest.
Leander Paes who has teamed up with Stepanek for a long time stated, “He is a phenomenal tennis player. He reads the game so well, but what makes him great is that he’s hard working, he takes direction really quick as far as doubles
stuff goes, and he also shares on certain things that I need to do better. I just got to keep him happy. He’s such a phenomenal singles player, phenomenal doubles player, now he has won some Grand Slams. What he’s done for his country in Davis Cup over many
years now and really with the calibre of a player like that, you’ve just got to keep them relaxed.”
Round Robin 1: David Ferrer vs. Radek Stepanek
Round Robin 2: Tomas Berdych vs. Nicolas Almagro
Round Robin 3: Marcel Granollers & Marc Lopez vs. Tomas Berdych & Radek Stepanek
Round Robin 4: David Ferrer vs. Tomas Berdych
Round Robin 5: Nicolas Almagro vs. Radek Stepanek
Spain is the favourite to win the contest but considering the strong side and home advantage of Czech Republic, they will definitely give the visitors a very tough time. The title defence is not going to be easy especially with
the absence of the former world number one, Rafael Nadal, who is still struggling to recover from the chronic knee injury that incurred in the Wimbledon Championships. He hasn’t seen since June and plans to return in the New Year’s first Grand Slam Championship,
the Australian Open 2013. It will be a tough task for them but they are capable of grinding the win out that will probably be the strongest ending for all the participants.
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