The Bahamas’ senior men’s national tennis team will kick off 2021 Americas Group III Davis Cup action this morning when they take on Cuba at the Centro de Alto Rendimiento Fred Maduro in Panama City, Panama.
The four-day tournament wraps up on Saturday. There are 10 other countries that will be battling for a promotion to the World Group II Playoffs in 2022. The other countries are Bermuda, Costa Rica, Cuba, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Panama, Puerto Rico, Trinidad & Tobago and the US Virgin Islands.
The Bahamas is in Group A with Cuba and Guatemala. They will play Cuba on court number one at 10 a.m. today.
Leading the team as the player/captain is Marvin Rolle who is a seasoned Davis Cup player. He is making his 17th Davis Cup appearance. Also on the team is Justin Roberts, Kevin Major Jr. and Baker Newman.
The team held two practices yesterday and one on Monday in Panama City. Rolle said that team is ready for the tournament.
“The guys were out practicing yesterday (Monday) and this morning (Tuesday). It was a good practice. We have Cuba first and I know they are a strong team. We are not taking them for granted. We will go out there and bring our ‘A’ game because any team that we play, we have to make sure that we come out fired up and ready because at any given moment anybody can have a good day. We have to make sure that we are on the ball.”
Rolle has been a part of The Bahamas’ Davis Cup team for 14 straight years. He has won 40 Davis Cup matches, 26 in doubles which is the most doubles wins for any Bahamian player. The veteran’s career-high ranking in doubles is 681 and he has a career-high 1304 ranking in singles.
“I think our unity,” Rolle said about the team’s strong points. “I think we come together well and even though I am the captain of the team, I do not make decisions by myself. I talk to the guys and get their feel of things to make decisions as a team. I think that is where we will do well as a team. Yes, everyone can play, but everyone needs to be on the same accord and supporting each other is where our strong point is.”
Playing in the number one slot for The Bahamas is Roberts who will play second in the order of play today. The 24-year-old is The Bahamas’ top ranked singles player with a current ATP (Association of Tennis Professionals) ranking of 785. He has a 984 ranking in doubles. On the college circuit, Roberts was a standout player for the Arizona State University Sun Devils.
He is debuting at Davis Cup and spoke about his first-time experience on The Bahamas’ Davis Cup team.
“I’m excited,” Roberts said. “I have been looking forward to this for a long time. It’s an honor and I think we will have a lot of fun representing the country.”
His captain spoke about him making his debut and how supportive he will be for his teammate.
“I think playing for your country is different. He has a lot of experience playing college tennis and I think he has some idea, but Davis Cup is totally different. He will be able to handle himself well and by him playing second, that will help as well. He will get to see the first match and get some of the nervousness out. I assume he will be nervous in his first match, but that is why I am on the court – to help guide him,” Rolle said.
Major is the reigning Giorgio Baldacci Open Men’s National Champion. He won the title in 2019 and will be on the court first today as the number two player on the team. This is his fifth Davis Cup experience and first since 2016. Major has had huge success on the Florida Men’s Open circuit coming away with 49 victories and just one loss in 2019. He comes from a recent stint in Germany and will look to head back there after his national team duty. He has a current transitional singles ranking of 1,599.
Newman will be playing in his fourth Davis Cup tournament. He has an impressive 11 singles wins and two doubles wins. The 25-year-old has a current transitional singles ranking of 1,901 and 2,109 in doubles. Newman was a tennis collegiate standout for Vanderbilt University.
Rolle said the doubles pairing will be determined by what happens in the first two matches.
The Bahamas Lawn Tennis Association (BLTA) has had an eventful two weeks as the women’s national team of player/captain Kerrie Cartwright, and collegians Sydney Clarke, Elana Mackey and Sierra Donaldson finished third at the recently completed Billie Jean King Cup Tournament. That tournament was played at the same location, in Panama City, and climaxed on Saturday.
The post The Bahamas to play Cuba in Davis Cup action appeared first on The Nassau Guardian.
source https://thenassauguardian.com/the-bahamas-to-play-cuba-in-davis-cup-action/
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