(December 1, 2011) With the end of the 2011 season drawing to a close, Spain and Argentina are set to begin the battle for the title of Davis Cup champion starting on Friday with the opening singles rubbers at Olympic Stadium in Seville, Spain. Complicating things for Argentina are Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer, two players with plenty of experience and history on the red clay.
Argentina threw the first surprise of the Davis Cup final when captain Tito Vazquez elected to nominate Juan Monaco to square off against Nadal in the opening singles rubber. The two have played three times in their careers, but have managed to avoid each other since 2007 when Monaco earned his only victory after Nadal was forced to retire in Cincinnati.
More than likely, Argentina is sending Monaco as a sacrificial lamb in order to conserve some of David Nalbandian’s energy, a likely option to play the final rubber if the tie is set to be decided. Despite recent news that Nadal is both tired from his long season as well as suffering from a bit of a shoulder injury, Vazquez appears to be playing to sweep the matches over Ferrer and the team of Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco.
Obviously, beating Ferrer in two consecutive matches on clay is no small feat, but Argentina will be helped some by the fact that Ferrer has only had a few days to rest and become accustomed to the clay after his run to the semifinals at the Barclays ATP World Tour Finals. His first match will be against World No. 11 Juan Martin del Potro who currently holds an even record in four matches.
The two have never met on clay and del Potro won their last two meetings before the wrist injury that plagued nearly all of his 2010 season. If Ferrer is a bit slow to react following his long season, the towering Argentine is definitely capable of using his offensive capabilities to square the match.
Argentina has never beaten Spain in Davis Cup competition, including a heartbreaking loss in the 2008 final that was contested in Mar del Plata, Argentina. Vazquez, who was selected to be the captain the following year, reflected on the missed opportunity, saying, “I wasn’t there I know we were very disappointed, very sad, as that was our chance. Nadal wasn’t in the team, that was our surface and the right surface to beat them.”
Both del Potro and Nalbandian claim that the loss is in the past, and the turmoil that the team experienced is gone, and a much more united team will take to the court in Seville. Verdasco, the man that clinched the 2008 victory knows that winning again will not be easy, saying, “It’s quite clear that the Argentines were hurt by that final. They were at home and favourites and it’s clear they want to pay us back. But we are preparing for it as if we have never won it before.”
They may try to act as if they haven’t won, but with two titles in the last three years, there is no denying that the Spanish Armada knows what it feels like to hold the trophy, and wants to do it again.