Tennis Players Withdraw from the Davis Cup, but David Ferrer Remains Confident
The Spanish team won’t be able to count on the current World No. 1, French Open, and Wimbledon champion Rafael Nadal for the Davis cup quarter-finals against France this weekend. Nadal has indeed announced that he would prefer taking some time off to prevent any further injuries and to treat his knees that he's been having trouble with.
However, it is important to note that Spain has won the Davis Cup twice without the Spaniard’s help, both in 2008 and 2009. The team also had David Ferrer as a key player, who played in those two last finals.
David Ferrer first achieved a top 10 ranking in 2006, and his highest was No. 4 in February 2008.
Ferrer has a history of defeats in major tournaments against countryman Nadal. Despite these losses, he's had an eventful 2010 year. He entered the 2010 Sony Ericsson Open as the 15th seed. In the second round match, Ferrer faced Michaël Llodra, whom he defeated in two sets, only to confront Ivo Karlović next. Ferrer was victorious over Karlovic and moved on to the fourth round, where he was defeated by his Spanish rival Nadal 6-7(5), 4-6. On another note, Karlović has just recently withdrawn from the Davis Cup Croatian team. They will face Serbia this weekend.
Like the World No. 1, Ferrer’s specialty is the clay court. As such, he entered the European clay court tournament, the 2010 Monte-Carlo Rolex Masters, where he was seeded 11th. He faced Peter Luczak in the first round and won, and defeated just as easily Andrey Golubev 6-3, 6-2 in the next round. Ferrer then faced Ivan Ljubičić, who is replacing Ivo Karlović in the Davis Cup Croatian team this year.
Ferrer's victory over the Croatian Ljubičić enabled him to reach the quarter-finals of this tournament, where he met with Philipp Kohlschreiber, whom he defeated 7-5, 7-6(1). He then advanced to the semi-finals, where he was, at last, crushed by Nadal in two sets 2-6, 3-6.
The Spaniard Ferrer did not give up, and he entered the 2010 Rome Masters, where he was seeded 13th. He played supremely well in the first round and his opponent, Evgeny Korolev, crumpled after a 6-4, 6-1 loss. Ferrer performed brilliantly and reached the third round, where he faced and defeated World No.4 Andy Murray 6-3, 6-4. He then met with the Frenchman Jo Wilfried Tsonga, who has just withdrawn from the Davis Cup French team. He crushed the French World No. 10 6-4, 6-1. He then defeated World No. 9 Fernando Verdasco, fellow Davis Cup Spain team player. Unfortunately, the tragic course of history repeated itself and Ferrer ultimately was defeated 5-7, 2-6 by Nadal once again, in the final. Ferrer was then ranked as World No. 12.
Ferrer entered the recent 2010 Wimbledon Championships, where he was seeded 9th. The high hopes of his supporters were fueled by his victories against Nicolas Kiefer 6-4, 6-2, 6-3, and Florent Serra 6-4, 7-5, 6-7(6), 6-3, which enabled him to pass through to the second round. The third round was as challenging for the Spaniard, who managed to defeat Jeremy Chardy 7-5, 6-3, 4-6, 3-6, 7-5. His course was cut short, however, in the fourth round when he faced Robin Soderling. Their Wimbledon match lasted several days, and Ferrer eventually lost 2-6, 7-5, 2-6, 6-3, 5-7 to the Swede.
Several players have withdrawn from the Davis Cup so far, which has affected the strategies and game plays of the tournament significantly. With Nadal, Spain would have been a terrifying team to confront in the quarter-finals. But this last-minute withdrawal of the World No. 1 could very well present an opportunity for Ferrer to shine once again, far away from Nadal’s own light. The two have yet to meet each other with Ferrer as victor.
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