Starting today, Tennis Channel will air live quarterfinal action in the Davis Cup, the team competition involving countries all over the world. Andy Roddick, Mardy Fish and newly-crowned Wimbledon men’s doubles champions, Bob and Mike Bryan will represent the US against Spain in the matches that will be held in Austin, TX. The matches will begin at 3 p.m. Eastern on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. In Davis Cup history, the US has never lost to Spain “at home” and Rafael Nadal is not participating in the rubbers this weekend, but Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco are and hope to lead the Spainards to a victory. The winner goes to the semifinals to face the winner of France-Germany which is also taking place this weekend.
Here’s the press release.
UNITED STATES CONTINUES CHASE FOR 2011 DAVIS CUP TITLE THIS WEEKEND ON TENNIS CHANNEL
Mardy Fish leads Andy Roddick and Wimbledon Doubles Champions Bob and Mike Bryan Against Spain in Quarterfinal
LOS ANGELES, July 7, 2011-Tennis Channel will provide exclusive coverage of the United States’ and Spain’s Davis Cup quarterfinal competition in Austin, Tex., this weekend with live telecasts of each match and same-day, “Instant Encore” replays beginning at 3 p.m. ET each day. The United States has never lost a Davis Cup match to Spain on American soil. The battle between 2009 Davis Cup champions Spain and the United States will consist of two singles matches on Friday, July 8, followed by the doubles match Saturday, July 9. Tennis Channel’s coverage concludes with the remaining singles play Sunday, July 10. Each of the five matches is worth one point, with the team that wins at least three points advancing to the semifinals to face Germany or France, Sept. 16-18.
Coverage from Frank Erwin Center at the University of Texas in Austin (all times ET):
Friday, July 8:
3 p.m. – Live Singles #1
6 p.m. – Live Singles #2Saturday, July 9:
{6 a.m. – Instant Encore Singles #1}
{9 a.m. – Instant Encore Singles #2}
3 p.m. – Live DoublesSunday, July 10:
{6 a.m. – Instant Encore Doubles}
{12 p.m. – Instant Encore Doubles}
3 p.m. – Live Singles #1
6 p.m. – Live Singles #2
{11 p.m. – Instant Encore Singles #2}The United States and Spain have faced each other nine times in Davis Cup play, with the United States holding a 5-4 advantage. The Americans’ last victory against Spain came in 2007 when they defeated the Spaniards 4-1 in Winston-Salem, N.C. However, Spain won the two nations’ most recent meeting in the 2008 semifinal on Spanish soil. The United States has not lost a match on home soil since 2005, when Croatia defeated the team in the first round. The Americans enter this weekend’s match after a 4-1 victory over Chile in Santiago, Chile in the first round this past March. The United States leads all nations in Davis Cup championships, winning its 32nd title in 2007 with a 4-1 win against Russia, which it had not defeated since 1995.
Leading the United States is captain Jim Courier, who as a player helped the American squad win the Davis Cup in 1992 and 1995. This will be Courier’s first match at home as the U.S. Davis Cup captain, following the retirement of 10-year Davis Cup captain Patrick McEnroe last year. Mardy Fish is World No. 8 and comes into this weekend’s match after an impressive run at Wimbledon before losing to defending champion Rafael Nadal in the quarterfinals. World No. 10, Andy Roddick, also enters this weekend’s match after reaching the third round at Wimbledon before losing to Spanish Davis Cup rival Feliciano Lopez. The world’s top-ranked doubles team, twin brother Bob and Mike Bryan, continue to be the world’s most dominant pair; capturing their eleventh Grand Slam doubles title at Wimbledon.
Spain enters this weekend’s matchup after a 4-1 victory over Belgium in the first round. Spain, the two-time defending champion, has dominated the past decade with Davis Cup championships in 2000, 2004, 2008 and, most recently, in 2009 when it defeated the Czech Republic 5-0 in Barcelona. The team is captained by Albert Costa and features World No. 6 David Ferrer, Fernando Verdasco, Feliciano Lopez, and Marcel Granollers.
And that is it for now.
