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There is Feliciano López, competing in his Davis Cup number fifteen, thirty heats with this one in 2021. Everything has been delivered to defend the shirt of Spain since his debut in 2003. “I have trained all my life for moments like this,” he admitted after opening with victory the tie against Ecuador; more prepared and aware than ever to show his chest in the face of obstacles and losses in this course: Rafael Nadal, Roberto Bautista, Carlos Alcaraz. This tournament is different from everything else, it is what the protagonists say and it is what is breathed in the atmosphere. «It has nothing to do with playing for yourself. This has always been different ”, assured Sergi Bruguera, captain of the Spanish team, to this newspaper.
Not only Bruguera’s team is the one who feels it. There was Roger Federer, closing the circle in 2014 after finally conquering the Salad Bowl with Switzerland, that notch that he had pending for his showcase.
The Swiss is not due to injury in this edition of Davis, back on the calendar after an exceptional year due to the coronavirus. Neither did Rafael Nadal, for the same reason. But there is Novak Djokovic, defending the Serbian jersey as if it were the greatest of the Grand Slams. In the day yesterday, individual match and aimed at doubles (in the end he rested). To leave nothing to chance because this time he does want to lift the trophy. He stayed in the quarterfinals in 2019 (against Russia), and today he captains the group Viktor Troicki, who already gave his country the important point in the 2010 final to conquer the Salad Bowl against France.
Although it is the number 1 who shows passion again, ten years later, for a shirt that he hits on the chest to claim that, for it, there is love, passion and effort. The last of the year. The biggest. Djokovic is especially excited about the blue glued to his skin because, as a child, he was able to play with the United Kingdom, where they offered him better schools and more competitiveness to grow as a tennis player, but he resigned from the offer and that is how he looks today honor and commitment to the flag.
“The last memory of Davis I have is sad, we were very excited in 2019, but we are again motivated to come here together,” said the Serbian, speaking for the entire team. “We are all friends and the chemistry in the group is very good. This is an essential ingredient for success, “he warned before starting his marathon day: two rounds. The first, against the Austrian Dennis Novak; the second, the doubles. All for Serbia. Even behind closed doors because the Covid-19 restrictions are met at the Innsbruck headquarters.
Djokovic accumulates fourteen editions, twenty-eight qualifiers. And an arsenal of individual victories of 35. More than a decade with consecutive victories, sixteen games in a row. Djokovic’s last defeat at Davis dates back to September 2011, against Juan Martín del Potro (7-6, 3-0 y ret). From that moment, the Serbian was Serbia, aimed at the cause for the first rounds and only skipping the list when his best years also demanded his greatest energies and the calendar did not give for more.
There is also Daniil Medvedev, who will face Spain tomorrow (4pm, Movistar). It is number 2 and he did not want to miss the appointment. It is Russia that appears on the scoreboard. Not his last name. Here neither their US Open nor their titles of the year in Marseille, Mutua Madrid Open and Canada are worth anything. Here is Russia the shirt, the sweat, the pride. As an anecdote, Medvedev debuted with the national team against Djokovic, in February 2017, and surprised with the first set, but then it was all for the rival (3-6, 6-4, 6-1 and 1-0).
Pride opens today against Ecuador (4:00 pm) and tomorrow, against Spain. «We already played this format two years ago and we know what the competition is like. The preparation is going well ”, admitted the Russian captain, Sharmil Tarpischev, also attached to the Davis as anyone, because the honor is not only confirmed on the track, but also on the bench. The 73-year-old Russian took office in 1974, and although with some absence in the 1990s, he has won two Davises with the men’s team (2002 and 2006) and four with the women’s team (2004, 2005, 2007 and 2008). . With the one of today it adds 67 eliminatory ones.
The Ecuador bank is also occupied by a long-term coach. Raúl Viver had barely dropped his racket when he was offered the position of captain. It was 1994. His team classified to these finals after winning Japan, this is his best participation since the 1985 quarterfinals. Viver was already there, but as a tennis player. Today he continues to defend Ecuador in the Davis Cup, the tournament of honor.
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