Spain arrive in Argentina for Davis Cup final

The Spanish Davis Cup team have arrived in Argentina in preparation for the 2008 Davis Cup final. While the team is determined to win the tournament, all media attention has been on Rafael Nadal, who was forced to  miss the tournament through injury.

“Independently of whether Rafa is here or not, we’re a competitive team and we’ve come seeking victory,” Spain’s Feliciano Lopez was quoted as saying by the Associated Press. “Rafa’s absence is important, but we’re going to push forward despite facing a strong rival.”

While there is no doubt that Nadal’s presence at the 2008 Davis Cup final will be missed, there is no doubt that the event will be intensely competitive, or that each match at the Islas Malvinas Stadium will be packed to capacity.

“The five points that we’re going to play are the most important in the history of national tennis,” David Nalbandian told the Canadian Press. “It’s nothing less and we can’t give away anything.”

The 2008 Davis Cup final will mark Argentina’s third attempt to win the biggest event in national team tennis, after two previous attempts ended in failure. Spain, meanwhile, have won the Davis Cup since the turn of the millennium, takin their first Davis Cup title in 2004.

Petition launched to delay Davis Cup final

While Argentinean Davis Cup team captain Alberto Mancini is celebrating the fact that his team will not have to face Rafael Nadal at the 2008 Davis Cup final, his enthusiasm is not shared by all Argentineans.

In recent days a grassroots campaign has emerged in Argentina calling for the Davis Cup final to be postponed until Rafael Nadal is fit enough to participate in the event. The campaign is the brainchild of one Julian Baena, who has set up www.quieroganarleanadal.com in order to garner support for his cause.

“There’s nothing more beautiful than to go down in history winning the final against the No. 1 in the world,” Baena says on the website. “That’s why I propose: Let’s postpone the Davis Cup final until Rafa recovers. Two weeks. A month. Whatever is necessary for him to be 100 per cent.”

The reaction to Baena’s campaign has proved that he is not alone in wanting to watch the two strongest possible teams contest the 2008 Davis Cup final. Around 13,000 Argentineans have signed the site’s petition for the delay of the Davis Cup final.

“I heard that many people… talked about how that was good news,” Baena says on the site. “Not for me. For me it’s terrible news. I want to beat Nadal.”

Granollers to replace Nadal in Spanish Davis Cup team

Marcel Granollers has been announced as the surprise replacement for the injured Rafael Nadal in the Spanish Davis Cup team.

56th ranked Granollers was chosen after Tommy Robredo, Carlos Moya and Nicolas Almagro declined invitations to appear in the 2008 Davis Cup final, citing fatigue. Santiago Ventura will join the Spanish Davis Cup side as a reserve player.

“Granollers has huge potential and a great future in front of him and is capable of playing singles and doubles. It will be a great experience for him,” Spanish team captain Emilio Sanchez-Vicario was quoted as saying by Reuters.

The Spanish Davis Cup team will depart for Argentina next week, with David Ferrer, Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco all scheduled to make the trip.

“We leave for Argentina on Thursday with a motivated group. It’s disappointing Nadal cannot be with us but we shouldn’t talk about him any more from now on,” Sanchez-Vicario told a news conference.

Argentina, meanwhile, have confirmed their team ahead of the 2008 Davis Cup final. Juan Martin del Potro, David Nalbandian, Jose Acasuso and Agustin Calleri will line up for the home side, led by Alberto Mancini.

Nadal out of Davis Cup final

Rafael Nadal has confirmed that he will not be participating in the forthcoming 2008 Davis Cup final. The world number one has been on the sidelines since withdrawing from the Paris Masters last month with a knee injury.

After weeks of speculation over his participation in the Davis Cup final, Nadal confirmed yesterday that tendinitis in his knee would prevent him from taking part in the Davis Cup final later this month.

“The knee said no,” Nadal said.”These are very difficult moments, but I have done all that I could to be ready for the final. It was a huge objective, and I’m used to playing with pain, but this is a distinct, new pain that I couldn’t control.”

The Spanish Davis Cup team doctor has said that Nadal will need at least 6 weeks to recover from his injury. Nadal’s place in the Spanish Davis Cup team will most likely be passed to either Tommy Robredo or Nicolas Almagro.

Argentinean Davis Cup captain Alberto Mancini was upbeat about his side’s chances against Spain after hearing of Nadal’s withdrawal from the Davis Cup final, saying: “We’re sorry for him, but it’s good news. Spain is one thing with Nadal, and another thing without him.”

Nadal unlikely to participate in Davis Cup final

Rafael Nadal’s trainer and uncle, Toni Nadal, has told reporters that the world number one is unlikely to  participate in the 2008 Davis Cup final.

Nadal was forced to cancel his trip to the season-ending Masters Cup tournament in Shanghai last week, after medical tests revealed tendinitis in his right knee.

Nadal will head to Barcelona on Monday for further testing, and appears increasingly likely to miss out on a potentially historic moment in Spanish tennis history.

“Right now his inclusion in the Davis team is difficult because the test did not go well,” Toni Nadal was reported as saying by Reuters. “There are very few options for Rafa to be there as he is feeling pain from what he is trying to do on court.”

Nadal has resigned himself to missing the Davis Cup final, and sees his injury as proof of the fact that the current season length demands too much of players’ bodies.

“The doctor tells me that the body needs to do its work and regenerate,” Nadal said. “That’s all.”

Argentina names team for Davis Cup final

The Argentinean team for the 2008 Davis Cup final was announced yesterday, with veteran play Guillermo Canas ousted by Jose Acasuso.

Acasuso’s inclusion will see him join David Nalbandian, Augustin Callieri and Juan Martin de Potro as they attempt to win their first Davis Cup title in Mar del Plata later this month.

Canas is believed to have been dropped after plummeting down the ATP rankings. He currently occupies 77th position in the ATP Tour rankings while his replacement, Acasuso, had climbed to 48th position during the 2008 tennis season.

Team captain Alberto Mancini is also believed to have favoured Acasuso for a role in the doubles tie, allowing star player David Nalbandian to focus on his singles matches at the 2008 Davis Cup final.

With Spanish star Rafael Nadal’s participation in the 2008 Davis Cup final in doubt, Argentina are looking like a good bet to take down the Davis Cup title. The team have not been beaten on home soil in a decade, and were the losing finalists in the Davis Cup two years ago.

The 2008 Davis Cup final is scheduled to be played from November 21-23 at the indoor Islas Malvinas stadium in Mar del Plata.

Tendinitis may rule Nadal out of Davis Cup final

Rafael Nadal’s participation in the 2008 Davis Cup final is in jeopardy after the Spanish star was diagnosed with tendinitis on Tuesday.

The doctor for the Spanish team, Angel Ruiz-Cotorro, confirmed on Tuesday that tests had detected tendinitis in Nadal’s right knee. Nadal will begin treatment on his knee immediately and will also undergo further testing on the afflicted area.

The Spanish Davis Cup team captain Emilio Sanchez Vicario has confirmed that Nadal will not be picked for the team if his injury problems continue. A further statement is expected on Saturday once doctors have had an opportunity to assess how well Nadal has responded to treatment.

Should Nadal fail to regain fitness in time for the 2008 Davis Cup final, Sanchez Vicario will have to rely on David Ferrer, Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco to defeat the Argentineans and claim the Davis Cup title.

“I want to recover and be ready for the important Davis Cup final with my country,” Nadal said before the announcement was made.

Nadal pulls out of Masters Cup

The extended Olympic season has finally taken its toll on world number one, Rafael Nadal, who has been forced to withdraw from the Masters Cup due to fatigue.

Nadal pulled out of the Paris Masters last Friday in the middle of his match with Nikolay Davydenko after suffering an injury. Subsequent reports suggested that Nadal was suffering from burnout, which he confirmed on his website when announcing his withdrawal from the Masters Cup.

“It has been a long and difficult year where I managed to obtain great results, both on a professional and on a personal level,” Nadal said. “I have mentioned on various occasions that the tennis calendar has been extremely hard with practically all weeks playing and where it forces players to compete week in, week out, making it impossible for a top level player to be 100 percent for each event.”

Good news for those looking forward to the Davis Cup final later this month is that Nadal still intends to compete in the event in Mar del Plata, and will use his absence from the Masters Cup to recuperate and prepare for the thrilling finale of the tennis season.

“I want to recover and be ready for the important Davis Cup final with my country that will be played in Mar del Plata, Argentina. That is also another reason for not coming to Shanghai,” Nadal confirmed.

Nadal at the end of his tether

World number one Rafael Nadal has admitted that exhaustion may become a problem as he heads into the final stretch of an extended Olympic tennis season.

The Spaniard, who won two grand slams and an Olympic gold in 2008, is looking increasingly vulnerable as the tennis season heads to its conclusion, and his coach, Toni, believes that Nadal could run into difficulty against fresher players.

“We are in a very bad state,” Nadal’s coach, Toni, was quoted as saying by Tennistalk. “We are going to do the best we can, and to see whether we can get through it as well as possible, knowing that there are two tournaments left which, of course, do not come at a good time for Rafael.”

Besides having to compete in the remaining ATP Tour events this season, including the Shanghai Masters and the Masters Cup, Nadal will be participating in the Davis Cup final against Argentina in Buenos Aires this November.

“I am a little bit at the limit, I am a bit short of strength,”  Nadal admitted prior to the start of this week’s Paris Masters.

Federer will play against US in Davis Cup

Roger Federer has ended weeks of speculation over his role in Switzerland’s 2009 Davis Cup campaign by agreeing to play for his country when it takes on the United States in March next year.

Federer agreed to play for his country after helping the Swiss Davis Cup team qualify for the elite World Group last month by defeating Belgium.

“I am excited to once again join my fellow Swiss teammates, who I have a great friendship with,” Federer said on his website. “I look forward to what I am sure will be a tough weekend.”

Federer has not played in the first round of the Davis Cup since 2004, when he helped Switzerland to defeat the Romanian Davis Cup team in Bucharest.

The world number two’s participation in the event is likely to have a substantial impact on the public turnout for the Davis Cup tie between Switzerland and the United States, and was welcomed by the United States Tennis Association.

“It has added a new dynamic and it has piqued interest around the country,” USTA spokesman Chris Widmaier was quoted as saying by the AFP.