Davis Cup 2015 - World Group Final - 27th-29th November

steven · Tennis legend

Davis Cup 2015 - World Group Final - 27th-29th November

nicofrance · Strong Club Player

I can't see any reason for Andy Murray to come out with comments re the WTFs apart from trying to influence the decision of Belgium re the surface.

He could just as easily pull out of those finals citing back issues but by then the decision would have been made re the surface, I think this is a bit of a double bluff. If he was to not play the WTFs then he'd be very rested with lots of time to practice on clay which would be a big help and a negative for Belgium. If he does play the WTFs and the Belgians dont choose clay then he really has to play those finals but could well be tired for the DC.

It's probably a quandary for the Belgian coach because clay isn't Darcis favourite surface and although Goffin has won a title on clay it was only a 250 and he hasn't beaten anyone of the stature of Nadal, if this was last year it would have been an easier decision for them but Murrays clay court form this season was excellent and with two titles he will feel very confident.

philwrig · Hall of fame

I've prebooked the expo centre local hotel in Ghent for 5 nights ( exc. Saturday ) that night already fully booked, just in case it's there.

Direct flight from Newcastle to Brussels is more than twice the price than if you go around the houses using Ryanair !!

I agree with Steven that the demand is going to be huge for this, I'm sure there were more Brits that went to SD, Rome and Croatia, so it won't be easy to get hold of them.

steven · Tennis legend

Depending on how the Belgians distribute the tickets, it may be possible for Brits to get hold of some of their allocation too. They will probably give priority access to members of their federation, frequent DC attenders, etc (like the LTA did for the SFs) but under the same EEA rules that enabled me and many others to get 2012 Olympics tickets from other European countries' resellers (e.g. I got my ticket to see Mo Farah win his second gold through Iceland of all places!), if they put any tickets on public sale, Brits would be able to apply for them too. Of course, they might try to make this difficult, e.g. by only despatching to addresses in Belgium - I seem to remember that was successfully challenged in the case of the Olympics but the timescales would be so much shorter in this case that they might get away with it.

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

Bob in Spain wrote:
This may upset a few people who have tickets for the O2 finals this year.

www.bbc.com/sport/0/tennis/34309163

Apparently now 'reconsidering':

http://www.theguardian.com/sport/blog/2015/sep/21/andy-murray-davis-cup-versus-atp-world-tour-finals-great-britain-belgium

indiana · Tennis legend

Interesting.

However tactical it was for Andy to publicly air his doubts ( and I actually very much doubt it, I think it was more just saying it as he saw it ), there clearly is a real issue with Andy playing at the 02 on hard and in Belgium on clay, particularly with limited transition time.

It will be a pity if he ends up almost forced to be at the O2 and is perceived as going through the motions.

-- Edited by indiana on Tuesday 22nd of September 2015 12:10:12 PM

BeefyDeedz · Pro player

On clay, Kyle must start as early favourite for selection. Will be interesting to see whether the Belgians opt for clay and risk Murray tactics.

Tennis Nut · Social player

BeefyDeedz wrote:
On clay, Kyle must start as early favourite for selection. Will be interesting to see whether the Belgians opt for clay and risk Murray tactics.

Can't see them picking the rookie for a Davis Cup final.

Bob in Spain · Tennis legend

Tennis Nut wrote:
BeefyDeedz wrote:
On clay, Kyle must start as early favourite for selection. Will be interesting to see whether the Belgians opt for clay and risk Murray tactics.
Can't see them picking the rookie for a Davis Cup final.

For the semi final, I stuck my neck out a week before the event and picked Evo for the Nº2 spot. This time, I am going with Beefy and saying Kyle will get the nod - on the assumption that the Belgians go for a clay court.

Kyle will be a rookie, making his debut, but I think the knowledge that he has beaten Darcis once this year, plus that fact that he is our "best of the rest" when it comes to clay, outweighs the rookie conundrum. There is still a lot of water to pass under the bridge before selection, but as things stand, I would definitely go for Kyle on this occasion.

Coup Droit · Tennis legend

Yes.

I'd say Evans is not in the reckoning at all for clay.

So, unless James gets a sudden run of form (which is always possible) or there's any problem with Kyle (which is just stating the obvious) then Kyle will get chosen - as long as Andy thinks Kyle's up for it.

It's true he's a rookie but it's also true that we've won the last two rounds (quarters and semis) without the number two winning a match and without the number two being expected to win or, on paper, having ANY chance of a win.

So I don't think there's all that much pressure on Kyle.

But if James pulls out a few wins, there's a decent chance for him too - James on clay always looks a little more comfortable to me than on faster courts, even though he's had some good wins on faster courts (somewhere in the memory......)

philwrig · Hall of fame

Also reckon Kyle is the call at the moment on his favourite surface and with the H2H, but alot can happen in 2 months.

indiana · Tennis legend

Bob in Spain wrote:
Tennis Nut wrote:
BeefyDeedz wrote:
On clay, Kyle must start as early favourite for selection. Will be interesting to see whether the Belgians opt for clay and risk Murray tactics.
Can't see them picking the rookie for a Davis Cup final.
For the semi final, I stuck my neck out a week before the event and picked Evo for the Nº2 spot. This time, I am going with Beefy and saying Kyle will get the nod - on the assumption that the Belgians go for a clay court.
Kyle will be a rookie, making his debut, but I think the knowledge that he has beaten Darcis once this year, plus that fact that he is our "best of the rest" when it comes to clay, outweighs the rookie conundrum. There is still a lot of water to pass under the bridge before selection, but as things stand, I would definitely go for Kyle on this occasion.

What Bob said, for the final anyway.

Re the semi final I remained with Kyle as the best bet,a bit ahead of Evo before his incident. But from a month or so before always thought that Evo should be on location from the start of the week ( in case of such things as err injury to Kyle ).

Being a rookie wouldn't be ideal, but it is always to me about the whole package most likely to get a win rather than specifics in isolation. Evo is much less of a contendor if it's on clay and James form ( lack of ) I think will likely still be a big issue. I unfortunately don't see him suddenly finding it again, playing week upon week, but he is in a catch 22 situation re proving himself and finding that form. Maybe a short break before a final push might have been in order.

theemptyvessel · Club Coach

Just a shame that Aljaz still has not had his appeal heard. A genuine clay court specialist who would not just have a chance but be a strong favorite to beat Darcis or whoever is the number 2 for Belgium.

philwrig · Hall of fame

I think there's a clause that makes him only available for finals, so why not !!

RJA · Hall of fame

BeefyDeedz wrote:
On clay, Kyle must start as early favourite for selection. Will be interesting to see whether the Belgians opt for clay and risk Murray tactics.

The Belgians would be be clinically insane not to go for clay. They are underdogs whatever they do but on hard court I struggle to see a realistic scenario, other than injury, where Andy doesn't deliver 3 points. On clay there is an element of doubt.