National Post (National Edition)
Missing Raonic ‘disappointing’
But Canada confident for Davis Cup
The withdrawal of both Milos Raonic and Andy Murray was a blow not only to Canada and Great Britain respectively, it also sapped some of the excitement out of this weekend’s Davis Cup match between the two countries.
With what’s at stake, the respective countries will move on without their top players: Raonic (world No. 3) and the top-ranked Murray.
The Brits will go with Kyle Edmund, Dan Evans, Jamie Murray and Dominic Inglot. Canada counters with Vasek Pospisil, Daniel Nestor, Denis Shapovalov and Peter Polansky.
“Last time (in a World Group playoff win over Chile in September), we didn’t have either Milos or Daniel and we were able to get the win,” said Canadian captain Martin Laurendeau on Monday. “They’ve had to be ready for the start of the season, this is just a followup. It’s a bit more intense because it’s (a best-of-five), it’s a long weekend and they’re playing for their country, not for themselves.”
“It’s disappointing, no doubt (not to have Raonic),” said Pospisil. “It’s a more difficult task without him. They don’t have their best player, we don’t have our best player. We still feel it’s a very tough tie even without Andy. They have accomplished players.
“We have confidence in our team. We’ve done it before. I know the level I can play when I put it together. We’re going to have to play extremely well, but we do have home-court advantage.”
Canada has advanced beyond the first round twice in the past five years, making the semifinals in 2013 and quarters in 2015. Matches Friday-Sunday will be played on an indoor hard court at The Arena at Ottawa’s TD Place. The last Davis Cup tie contested in Ottawa was more than 20 years ago, in 1994, when Canada beat Jamaica 5-0 in a Group II zonal tie at the Ottawa Athletic Club.
The Canadians, ranked 12th in the world, have a tough task ahead against the No. 1-seeded Brits. But in this format, sometimes there’s more at play.
“Davis Cup, it’s not so much about ranking, it’s all about passion and teamwork — everybody trying to contribute a point here and there,” said Laurendeau. “They have higher-ranked players than us, but in Davis Cup, sometimes you can throw that out the window. You can have a player ranked very high that plays not up to his ranking because of the crowd, the conditions or the pressure. But you can also have a player ranked lower and play like a top-30 player. That’s what makes this competition special.”
The format really puts an emphasis on ‘team’ in a sport that so often is one-on-one.
“It’s not everybody out for themselves, everyone plays for Canada,” said Laurendeau. “You have to bring individual players who play an individual sport and get them into a team spirit in a matter of a few days. That’s the biggest adjustment — you have to play for your teammates, play for your country, where every other tournament on your calendar, you play for yourself.”
It’s a good time for Canadian tennis. A win this weekend would give this country plenty of momentum going forward.
“The last six or seven years have been very productive for Canadian tennis,” said Laurendeau. “The biggest change, I think, is our expectation to keep on winning. That culture of winning and better performances, we expect to win more than before. We’ve established our place on the international scene and we want to keep it.”
To pull that off, the Canadians will need players like Pospisil to come with their ‘A’ game.
“The last couple of weeks, I haven’t had the best results and I didn’t have a great year last year,” Pospisil said. “But the tennis is there, the level is there, it’s just about putting it back together. I feel like I’m playing much better than what my ranking says. I know the ranking will come back up to where I believe it belongs. And I know that on any given day, I can beat anybody.”
There will be an official tournament draw Thursday at Parliament Hill.
YOU HAVE TO PLAY FOR YOUR TEAMMATES, PLAY FOR YOUR COUNTRY.