SA, Denmark set for Davis Cup clash
Brad Morgan
17 July 2008
South Africa and Denmark meet in a Davis Cup tie on South African soil for the first time on Friday in a Euro-Africa group two Davis Cup clash at Emperors Palace in Johannesburg. The countries have met four times previously and are tied at two wins apiece.
The last time they faced off was in 2003, when South Africa took victory. It had been 40 years since the two countries last met in 1963, when SA also won. Prior to that, Denmark recorded victories in 1955 and 1957.
A hard court has been purpose-built for the tie at Emperors Palace where seating for 1 400 has been provided. And although neither team boasts a top-drawer attraction, the prospect of watching international tennis once again has proved popular, with tickets being snapped up.
'Blown away'
Mark Jakins, the Peermont's Group Chief Commercial Officer, said Emperors Palace "prides itself on outstanding sporting and entertainment events and for the 2008 Davis Cup tie our guests and tennis fans will be blown away by activities planned around the event.
"We will make sure the 2008 event is one to remember and becomes a must for fans on the South African tennis calendar."
The Davis Cup has proved quite remarkable over the years by consistently proving that world rankings and favourites tags count for less when countries do battle than when individuals meet on the ATP Tour.
Home advantage
Playing at home has often proved to be enough of an advantage for a lesser regarded host to beat a highly-touted visiting team. That's because the hosts choose the surface for the clash and because, unlike most events on tour, the crowd plays a bigger role in the contest than is normally seen; vociferous patriotism is a key ingredient of the Davis Cup and it gives tennis lovers the opportunity to play a more active role in the game than they would usually do.
Besides having home court advantage, South Africa could also benefit from playing the tie in Johannesburg; the Danes will have had little experience of playing at such high altitude.
When a country's honour is on the line, for some players the stakes are raised and they rise to the occasion in the Davis Cup. Take Finland's Jarkko Nieminen, who led the Finnish challenge against South Africa in the last round of the competition. Before his loss to SA number one Kevin Anderson he took a 26-6 record into the tie – a record that would be worthy of a top-10-ranked player, although he was, at the time, ranked 26th in the world.
Unique
The point is that the Davis Cup is unique in the tennis world and the outcomes of ties are less predictable than the results of ATP events. Depth, teamwork, and good performances in both singles and doubles are needed for success. One brilliant player cannot carry a team to victory, although his ability can go a long way towards winning a tie.
Kevin Anderson will lead the South African team as the number one singles player. After a strong start to the year during which he defeated Novak Djokovic after the world number three had won the Australian Open and then the Indianapolis Masters, his form fell off a little. But it appears he is getting back to his best.
Rik de Voest will handle the number two spot. One of Anderson or De Voest will likely also be in action in the doubles. That's because Wesley Moodie is out of the tie with a tear of the patella tendon in his left knee. His absence is a big setback as Moodie and Jeff Coetzee form a formidable doubles combination.
With Moodie out, SA captain John-Laffnie de Jager has called up Izak van der Merwe as cover for the singles' players.
Danish team
Denmark will be without their leading singles player, Kristian Pless, and will field a line-up comprising Frederick Neilsen, Martin Pedersen, Norby Rasmus and Thomas Kromann.
The Danish captain John Larsen says while his team's players are ranked below South Africa's players, they are confident ahead of the showdown. They arrived in Johannesburg ahead of the South Africans in an effort to adjust as quickly as possible to the foreign conditions.
The winner of the weekend's clash will take on the winner of the Algeria versus Morocco tie for a place in group one of the Euro-Africa zone.
PROGRAMME
Friday
Saturday
Sunday
All the matches are played as the best of five sets.
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