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Apr/17

12

Querrey Reflects On Davis Cup Defeat vs Australia

Qball
By Jayita A Belcourt
At the Davis Cup quarter-finals clash between USA and Australia last weekend in Brisbane (Australia), world no.25 Sam Querrey found himself in precarious grounds. Trailing 1-2 going into the reverse singles on Day 3, Querrey knew the significance of this clash. Secure a victory and keep USA’s hopes alive or shatter his countries Davis Cup title dream for 2017. Unfortunately for the bubbly American, a very inform and focused Nick Kyrgios stood in his tracks. Beaming with confidence and striking the ball with phenomenal precision and grace, the young Aussie’s display was so impressive tennis great and USA captain Jim Courier later labelled him as a “top 5 player”. For Querrey, who had recently outclassed his 21 year old opponent at the Mexican Open (Acapulco) semi-finals just weeks earlier, it was a disappointing exit, going down 7-6(4), 6-3, 6-4 after leading 3-0 in the opening set and 4-1 in the third. No stranger to adversity, Querrey spoke candidly about the loss, describing what it’s like working with team captain Jim Courier and USA’s Davis Cup hopes for the future.
Obviously not the results USA would have liked, take us through your thoughts of the match?
Sam Querrey: I mean Nick is playing well right now. Coming off a quarter final in Indian Wells, a semi-final in Miami – these two weeks he was confident and any time he’s confident he’s a much more dangerous player. You know when he’s loose and swinging away, he’s one of the best in the world. Look, I was up a break two of the sets, but he came out big and ended up winning both of them. I had my chances, John had his chances against him on Friday but Nick was just too good frankly. He did all the right things, made all the big shots. I didn’t feel I did anything wrong and I don’t think John [Isner] feels that way either.
What was it like playing Nick in front of his hometown crowd, was it hard going up against that?
Sam Querrey: It wasn’t hard necessarily but I think he feeds off it. You know I feel he likes the lively atmosphere whether it’s a home tie or he’s playing on the world tour, I think he definitely likes that kind of atmosphere.
Talk about Jim Courier as the USA team captain. What’s it like?
Sam Querrey: It’s great. He’s been the team captain for like 5 or 6 years and it’s always fun. He’s a great captain – he’s got a great insight into the game. We all enjoy having him on the bench, so we’re going to keep plugging away and hopefully make a run one of these years and hopefully we can win a [Davis Cup] title.
Tell us your thoughts about the whole experience of playing Davis Cup in Brisbane (Australia)?
Sam Querrey: It’s great. I’ve played this tournament [Brisbane International] here four or five times and I know the other guys have all played at least once. It’s a great venue and any time where the venue is sold out makes it fun. The Aussie’s are a tough team and they’re going to be a real threat to win the Davis Cup this year.
Sounds like you guys will be walking away with your heads high, facing such tough opponents?
Sam Querrey: Definitely yeah!

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83 comments

  • Dan Markowitz · April 15, 2017 at 3:25 am

    Actually, Arias was pointing out that Escobedo likes to run around his backhand and hit inside in forehand, but maybe that was a ploy against Izzie who’s slow to the forehand side of the court. Izzie looked winded at the end of the second set even to the point where he was coaxing serve in for an entire game and just serve and volleying because he had no more energy to cover the court.

    Izzie looks like he’s breaking down. His best days are certainly gone, but you can tell he loves the game and will try to soldier on. Sock must really annoy opponents. Even SteveJo in Delray gave him the curtest of handshakes at the net at the end of their match.

  • Scoop Malinowski · April 15, 2017 at 7:34 am

    Sock and Johnson do not look like bosom buddies on the singles court. Good interesting rivalry. First saw them play in sarasota open five years ago and Johnson eked out first set breaker then Sock suddenly a quit at 1-2 in second bc of heat. Was first match on stadium court. These two always battle.

  • Hartt · April 15, 2017 at 7:43 am

    After waiting for what seemed forever to see Sock vs Feli Lopez my stream did not work. Looked up the scores but does anyone have any further comments on the match? Was interested to hear that Sock employed shenanigans against Feli. Am going to start watching out for that in future Sock matches.

  • catherine bell · April 15, 2017 at 8:09 am

    Hartt –

    Re your earlier comment on Duval I noticed she beat Bouchard in the ITF tournament they were playing.

    Where does that leave Genie ?

  • Hartt · April 15, 2017 at 9:59 am

    I watched the first 3 games of that match and then gave up. Bouchard played very badly, she kept trying to be aggressive when it was not working and made way too many UFEs. Duval was a bit more solid but it was more a matter of Genie beating herself in those games. I thought Bouchard needed match play but if she still has not learned how to reign in the aggression when necessary and be more patient, then I don’t have a lot of optimism for her getting back on track.

    I am still bewildered why Duval coming back from so much adversity is not a big story. She is a very engaging young woman and to make a successful comeback after about a year is impressive. Coupled with the tragedies her family suffered in Haiti and her recovery from cancer, hers is a compelling story. Stephanie Myles had a brief mention of her comeback and the Florida Open had a piece on her match against Bouchard. Other than that the only articles I could find were in Spanish or French about the match.

    So far nothing on the WTA site about Duval. They can’t seem to see a good story when it is right under their nose. I know this is not a WTA tour match but these are WTA players.

  • catherine bell · April 15, 2017 at 10:37 am

    I agree – I’ve browsed a few websites and nothing about Duval at all – generally just the same old stuff. I’m perpetually surprised that people actually get paid for writing (or rewriting) all these nothing stories.

    Tennis journalism has to be some of the worst.

    For the WTA, if a story doesn’t fit their mould, or current obsession – forget it.

  • catherine bell · April 15, 2017 at 10:43 am

    T-P excepted from my journalism comment of course 🙂

  • Hartt · April 15, 2017 at 10:45 am

    No wonder the WTA can’t drum up much interest.

    The ATP is far from perfect but at least they are featuring the young up-and-coming players, a wise move.

  • catherine bell · April 15, 2017 at 11:13 am

    The crowds at some of the WTA events I’ve caught on clips etc have been unispiring. The final at Monterrey wasn’t even half full it seemed to me.

    I wonder if the WTA cares at all, as long as the tv rights have been sold and sponsors’ money is in the bag.
    But not good for the players or for the game.

  • Hartt · April 15, 2017 at 12:25 pm

    Unfortunately there are often small crowds for ATP matches as well. They were very poor for the matches at the Marrakech tourney, even when there was a local player or for today’s SFs. I don’t know how much interest there is in the area or what the ticket prices are like, but it is discouraging to see so few fans.

    But I was thrilled for the Kohlschreiber vs Paire match. Kohli played some exquisite tennis and won 6-2, 6-2. He is one of my favourite players to watch when he is making the kinds of shots he did today. That beautiful BH was in full flight. Paire, of course, was a total jerk and the crowd, such as it was, booed him a couple times.

  • catherine bell · April 15, 2017 at 1:12 pm

    Do you know anything about the Czech girl Vondrousova (Spelling not right) who seems to be promising ? She’s 17 I think.

    Yes – I’ve noticed thin crowds at men’s events as well. Maybe punters only turn up for the finals and in some of these far flung tournaments there may not be much interest in tennis anyway.
    And during the week a lot of people would be at work.

    As a cricket follower I’m used to seeing Test Matches played in front of 3 men and a dog, all the crowds having deserted to one day slogathons, but a good idea during the last tour of India was to bus in lots of kids to fill the empty seats and perhaps inspire a new generation.
    Same could be done in tennis.

  • Hartt · April 15, 2017 at 1:51 pm

    Had not heard of Marketa Vondrousova until today. She was playing against Strycova at he same time I was watching Kohlschreiber but the folks on Match Call Migrants, who follow the WTA closely, were very excited about her. One said she was a cool as a cucumber (a good attribute to have when faced with Strycova’s drama). He also lauded her “defense and variety with the slices and lobs.” Sounds pretty impressive for such a young player.

    I could never figure out why the tourneys did not find ways to bring in spectators so the stands don’t look so empty. Schoolkids or players from local tennis clubs are 2 possibilities.

  • Andrew Miller · April 15, 2017 at 3:42 pm

    maybe ticket prices too high and maybe tournaments shouldn’t be so greedy. They bank a lot on being able to hike prices for the finals and maybe they ought to think about the sport’s popularity and that keeping ticket prices too high isn’t a surefire way to have spectators. They used to NEVER charge for qualies matches at some ATP tournaments and now they do, and quite a bit might I add.

  • Andrew Miller · April 15, 2017 at 3:43 pm

    Sock and Johnson are fine. I saw them play dubs here and they were buds. Maybe everyone’s just angry with him for losing the Thompson match. Seems everyone but Sock is doing bad after the Davis Cup, with Querrey out, Isner out, and Johnson losing again to Sock.

  • Andrew Miller · April 15, 2017 at 3:47 pm

    Here in the States watching pro tennis is sometimes popular and sometimes not. I tend to believe the sport was sky high popular in the 1990s and remains popular when people can get into tournaments. It shouldn’t be so hard to get people to seats, it isn’t as if no one can or wants to go. But if prices are too high no one wants to go. I paid a ton for normal tickets. The stands were packed but it cost a pretty penny.

  • Hartt · April 15, 2017 at 4:23 pm

    Yes, I agree about ticket prices. I can’t afford the night prices for Rogers Cup. One time that I did go was lucky enough to see 2 matches, one with Fed and one with Milos so for me it was well worth it. It used to be very affordable and you could see top players, but no longer.

    But I go to the qualies, which are still free and they get big crowds for them. They promote it as an outing for families. And I will get an inexpensive ticket for a couple days at the beginning of the week and go to matches on the outer courts where you can get very close to the players and maybe watch a couple of the top guys practice.

    But if the tickets were more reasonable they would get more people and bring in as much $ in the end.

  • Scoop Malinowski · April 15, 2017 at 7:53 pm

    Very good crowd today at Sarasota Open qualies – mario Ancic – Carling Bassett Seguso – Robert Seguso – Petr Korda were all at the venue today – Pretty good crowd to to see Stefan Kozlov win easily – Blaz Rola won in three sets – Reilly Opelka was hitting – macmac was hitting with tennys sandgren and a few other interesting players I will tell you about later – One guy does something special that no other player in the world does – Can you guess?

  • Scoop Malinowski · April 15, 2017 at 7:55 pm

    Duval is a beautiful nice sweet person with a sparkle in her eyes and smiles – Hope I have a chance to interview her soon –

  • Scoop Malinowski · April 15, 2017 at 8:03 pm

    Hartt; Sock started off in a bad mood and didn’t like the court and called out officials for a soft spot behind the baseline which no other player complained about all tournament – Sock got off to a bad start and started chattering and making gestures and hitting a tweener – Just doing a bunch of extracurricular stuff which I interpret as a subtle way to vent his frustrations while also it distracts the opponent – Lopez is a methodical straigh shooting player who does not like antics and extracurricular activity – Just little annoyances like not apologizing after a lucky net cord then a slam overhead by F Lo that was kind of close to Sock and the tension kept building – then walking to a changeover Lopez and Sock had a few words in the middle of first set – then Lopez blew a 5-1 lead in the first set tiebreaker and Sock yelled a huge YES! after he won the set which stuck the knife in deeper – Lopez won the second set which Sock appeared to tank – Then Sock was up 3-0 in the third but Lopez battled back to level it then Sock again was able to take the lead – it just was a great match and there was tension which seemed to be from the past – the handshake was brief and Lopez tried to say something to Sock but Sock ignored it and shook the umps hand and celebrated – Lopez left the court in a hurry –

  • Andrew Miller · April 15, 2017 at 9:45 pm

    Yeah, play two forehands? That’s something no one does. Seles and Gambill played two backhands and one of the Murphy boys Luke maybe two serves, but no one plays two forehands.

  • Scoop Malinowski · April 15, 2017 at 10:18 pm

    We have a winner!!! Great deduction by Andrew. Amazingly Collin Johns plays with forehands off both wings. Lost in three sets to Blaz Rola today. Stay tuned for more info…

  • Scoop Malinowski · April 15, 2017 at 10:21 pm

    Watching tape of Escobedo win first set vs Bellucci. Wow. Kid can play. Heavy hits but also two shockingly good volleys too. Love his court demeanor maturity focus.

  • Chazz · April 16, 2017 at 12:05 am

    How about Stevie Johnson beating Sock today to move into the finals? Sock unraveled in the 3rd after being up an early break. Johnson was the more focused player and the win was well-deserved. They seem pretty friendly, there was no tension at all during or after the match.

  • Hartt · April 16, 2017 at 6:41 am

    Scoop, hope you do get a chance to interview Vicky Duval. I would love to read her Biofile.

  • Jg · April 16, 2017 at 7:25 am

    Tennis Files Podcast did an interview with Collin Johns, he didn’t pick up the game until late and was a baseball player. I think he’s from Maryland, interesting story, no formal tennis background

  • Andrew Miller · April 16, 2017 at 12:36 pm

    Davis Cup: Pete Bodo from ESPN tennis basically said that Courier played Sock in dubs vs the second singles match on day three, so Sock was going to play two matches but it ended up being his singles and his dubs match. A two match cap in other words. To me this says more about the vulnerability for dubs now that the Bryans retired from Davis cup duty ( which I argued for ) but unfortunately not much thought given on who steps in for doubles duty. Sock and Johnson are the elite doubles team without the Bryans, so if Sock is only played two matches per tie this is what it looks like. Not great.
    I get it this is a boring topic but it comes down to this – Courier has to encourage everyone to play doubles and play doubles well. If Sock is needed for the first and the reverse singles you don’t just need a solid #2 behind him but a decent doubles squad, decent as in “own several doubles titles on tour”. US squads have a tradition of playing elite doubles squads, from McEnroe and anyone to Flach Seguso and Leach Pugh Nd Bryan Bryan, or the Murphy boys. Most of those guys won their dubs matches and freed up the singles guys to focus on their matches.
    Generally I think dubs helps singles. But in Davis cup I think the pressure is much higher than even slam matches, especially in front of a home crowd.
    I’m also surprised to see Courier advocating for a Davis cup tournament all in one go, a month long thing, and scrapping the current home and away format. I’m totally against it and I’m against all other changes like occ and scrapping best of five sets. The only sensible change to me is the fifth set tiebreaker.

  • catherine bell · April 16, 2017 at 1:14 pm

    I thought Courier’s suggestion was ridiculous. You might as well scrap the Davis Cup altogether. Home and away makes the competition.
    The only sensible change to Davis Cup format in the modern era was doing away with the Challenge Round which was outdated.
    I got the the feeling Courier wouldn’t have said that if the US had won.

  • Andrew Miller · April 16, 2017 at 2:31 pm

    Maybe Courier wants out.

  • Hartt · April 16, 2017 at 3:18 pm

    Doubles News: Tiafoe, partnered with Brown, is in the finals in Houston. They will face Peralta/Zeballos.

    In Monte Carlo several singles players are also in doubles: Novak, Stan, Cilic, Thiem and Dimitrov. Haas is also getting some work in with doubles.

  • Jg · April 16, 2017 at 6:35 pm

    Dustin Brown and Tiafoe make a very entertaining doubles pair

  • scoopmalinowski · April 16, 2017 at 7:13 pm

    This is an entertaining final. Tiafoe showing no signs of stage fright. Really playing well.

  • Chazz · April 16, 2017 at 11:23 pm

    Watch out for that 17 year old Vondrousova (mentioned above). She won her 2nd ever WTA tournament played, and did it after getting through as a qualifier. She looks really good.

  • Scoop Malinowski · April 17, 2017 at 7:50 am

    I think Voudrousova is playing this weekend with the Fed Cup b squad vs USA –

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