February 10-12 has been circled on the calendars of the country’s tennis fans for months now, since it was first announced in September that Canada would meet France in its return to the Davis Cup by BNP Paribas World Group.
Well, the rosters have been announced, the players have arrived in Vancouver, and the venue has been transformed into a proper home for world-class tennis – the highly anticipated event is now just days away.
The draw to determine who plays the opening match Friday afternoon will take place on Thursday, but whether it’s Milos Raonic, Vasek Pospisil, or Frank Dancevic who steps onto the court, it will mark the nation’s first appearance in the elite World Group since 2004 and just the fourth in its history.
Rounding out Canada’s roster is Daniel Nestor, who will be relied on to secure the crucial doubles rubber on Saturday. The Toronto native has been wearing the maple leaf proudly for 20 years now and will be looking to increase his grasp on the Canadian Davis Cup record for most wins, which he already holds with 44 and counting. Team captain Martin Laurendeau has yet to decide who will be partnering the seven-time doubles Slam champion this time around.
Boasting four Top 20 players and an overall six in the Top 50, France had a plethora of competitors to choose from for its efforts to defeat Canada. Captain Guy Forget settled on Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, Gael Monfils, Michael Llodra, and Julien Benneteau. Forget has indicated that Tsonga and Monfils will contest the singles rubbers, with Llodra and Benneteau tackling the doubles.
Technically, France holds the 1-0 advantage in the head-to-head between the two countries, but because that tie was back in 1966 the opponents are essentially starting fresh. France, with its impressive roster and recent success, is undoubtedly the favourite but Canada should not be counted out. With emphatic support from the home crowd to assist them, the Canadians definitely possess the tools to complete the upset.
As its No. 1 player, Raonic’s performance will be critical for Canada. The world No. 28 started the year off strongly, capturing his second ATP World Tour title at Chennai and reaching the third round of the Australian Open. He has never played world No. 6 Tsonga before, and has only challenged No. 13 Monfils once – dropping a hotly-contested 6-7(6), 6-4, 6-3 decision in the Stockholm semifinals last fall.
Following his incredible efforts to lead Canada to victory over Israel in September’s World Group play-off, Pospisil is likely to be named the team’s No. 2 player. Though the 21-year-old will be the underdog in his matches, he has proven he can lift his level of play when it matters. He already has two Top 25 victories to his name, both secured last season, and Davis Cup would be the perfect place to net win No. 3.
With Nestor on one side of the net and Llodra on the other, Saturday’s doubles match is sure to be an exciting and hard-fought battle. As the Canadian is ranked world No. 3 in doubles and his French counterpart No. 5, the two have duelled often on the ATP World Tour, and both will bring their best tennis to the court.
Every minute of the action will be aired live coast-to-coast on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday on Sportsnet and TVA Sports, starting at 2 p.m. PST each day.
