NEWS JC took part in a warm-up for the Louis Vuitton Cup yesterday aboard the Desafio Espanol.

"In the first round of match races, Alinghi won with a 50-second margin ahead of Desafio Espanol, which had Spanish tennis star Juan Carlos Ferrero on board as its 18th man."

Posted by nana at 5:21 AM

PALERMO DRAW The draw for Campionati Internazionali di Sicilia is out. JC is in the bottom half and faces German Florian Mayer in the first round. The top seed in his half is Tommy Robredo with other notable claycourters Calleri and Verdasco. Best of luck to him ^^

>> full draw

Posted by nana at 3:39 AM

ARTICLE Ferrero win seals top flight survival for Spain
Spain's Juan Carlos Ferrero beat Italy's Daniele Bracciali in straight sets 63 60 63 on Sunday to secure a 3-2 win for his country in their Davis Cup World Group Play-off.

Spain went into the final two singles matches trailing 2-1 after a surprise defeat in Saturday's doubles but, after world No. 2 Rafael Nadal beat a battling Andreas Seppi, Ferrero sealed the comeback to leave Italy facing a sixth season outside the top flight.

The Spaniards, last season's champions, were forced into the Play-offs after their first round defeat to Slovakia, and Jordi Arrese's team were facing the prospect of relegation after two days of spirited play from the Italians lapped up by capacity crowds at the new stadium at the foot of Mount Vesuvius.

Nadal's victory changed the mood however, with the 19-year-old, who has claimed ten singles titles this season, bringing his team level and setting up Ferrero for what was, in the end, a straightforward win.

Nadal, who along with Feliciano Lopez lost in the doubles to leave the Spaniards trailing in the tie overnight, met with little resistance from Seppi in the first two sets. But Seppi, who provided a surprise on Friday when he beat Ferrero, battled hard in the third set, finding the inspiration for a 75 victory to keep the rubber alive.

The fourth set was a struggle for a tiring Nadal in the southern Italian heat but he ground out a 64 victory to take the tie on to level terms. "I've had a tough week or so with the China Open, the flight back from China and then a singles on Friday and a doubles game on Saturday that lasted for four and a half hours," said Nadal. "My first two sets were very good and in fact I'd say the first set was perfect but then from the third set I struggled physically and it became hard work.

"He started to play more aggressively and I found it difficult to move around the court. But I played with my heart right until the end. It was my faith in victory when physically it became tough that was the key," added the Spaniard.

Ferrero had no trouble in dealing with Bracciali and despite suffering a cut to his knee which left him bleeding throughout the third set he cruised to a win which saved Spain from becoming only the third team in the Davis Cup World Group's 24-year history to be relegated from the World Cup the year after winning the title. France went down in 1998 and Sweden, winners in 1999, were relegated in 2000.

Posted by nana at 3:20 AM

ARTICLE Seppi puts Italy ahead 1-0

Italy took a surprise 1-0 lead over Spain in their Davis Cup World Group play-off on Friday after Andreas Seppi produced a tremendous fightback from two sets down to beat Juan Carlos Ferrero 57 36 60 63 62 in a four-hour long battle.

The Spaniard looked below his best, despite taking the opening two sets 7-5 and 6-3, largely thanks to unforced errors from Seppi, but he was crushed 6-0 in the third set as the Italian kept the match alive.

Seppi, over 58 places below 20th-placed Ferrero in the rankings, brought the match level with an impressive 6-3 win in the fourth set and the Spaniard looked tired in the final set as an inspired Seppi cruised to a 6-2 victory to take the rubber.

For a passionate home crowd packed into the new stadium at the foot of Mount Vesuvius, Seppi provided a perfect start to Italy's attempt to return to the Davis Cup top flight.

"I'm delighted. I played well in the third and fourth sets but I was really tired in the final set but managed to keep it together. This is a dream result," said Seppi who had to receive treatment for cramp on several occassions.

"I felt cramp at the end of the second set and had a few attacks every now and then to the end of the match. I was getting cramp all over, in my thighs and calves," said the Italian.

Seppi said the key to his turnaround had been a change in approach, with more aggressive and positive play bringing results.

"I changed my tactics, pushing more and more and was more aggressive in all senses and it paid off. I had some doubts at the start but then I decided to go for it whenever I had a chance and I did that," he said.

The Italian said the vocal home support had also had an impact on his game.

"That was the greatest support I've ever experienced on a tennis court, it was fantastic," he said, "The Davis Cup really is the most enjoyable tournament to play in when you have fans behind you like that."

Ferrero agreed that it was Seppi's switch to a more direct and risk-taking approach that had turned around an absorbing rubber.

"I had things under control in the first two sets but from the third set he changed tactics and went on to the attack much more but I don't think I played badly," said the Spaniard.

"Even after the third set I was convinced I could win the rubber because I knew he had some physical problems. At 2-0 up you don't expect your opponent to come back and win but you can never be over-confident in this competition because people fight right till the end. I think today he just played better than me," added Ferrero.

"But we haven't given up yet. It was only one match and not the entire tie," he said.

Spain, Davis Cup winners last year, were forced into the Play-offs after defeat to the Slovak Republic and must now hope that current world No. 2 Rafael Nadal can get them back on level terms in the tie with a victory over Daniele Bracciali in Friday's other singles match.

Bracciali was drafted in for Italy earlier on Friday after Potito Starace was forced out with flu.

Posted by nana at 3:56 AM

DAVIS CUP UPDATES

The official draw for the Italy v Spain Davis Cup by BNP Paribas World Group Play-off tie has been made and is as follows:

Andreas Seppi (ITA) v Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP)
Potito Starace (ITA) v Rafael Nadal (ESP)
Daniele Bracciali/Giorgio Galimberti (ITA) v Feliciano Lopez/Rafael Nadal (ESP)
Andreas Seppi (ITA) v Rafael Nadal (ESP)
Potito Starace (ITA) v Juan Carlos Ferrero (ESP)

Former world number one Juan Carlos Ferrero will take on Andreas Seppi in the opening match of Spain’s Davis Cup by BNP Paribas World Group play-off against Italy this weekend.

The tie, which takes place at Torre del Greco, at the foot of Vesuvius near Naples, will be the 12th Davis Cup meeting between the two nations. Italy holds a 7-4 lead from those past clashes, but the task facing the home side against a team packed with some of the world’s best clay court players is immense especially given the absence of their top player Filippo Volandri.

Volandri was left out of the Italy squad after a contract dispute with the Italian Tennis Federation. Spain’s challenge is headed by world number two Rafael Nadal, whose game against local Potito Starace, ranked 107th, is the second fixture on Friday and likely to attract the most attention. Starace hails from nearby Benevento and will attract some passionate support from local fans but it will require a huge upset for the 24-year-old to give the Italians cause for celebration.

Nadal, 19, is enjoying a hugely impressive breakthrough season with his triumph in the Chinese Open last week his tenth tournament victory of a season which has included triumphs in the Rome ATP Master Series event and Roland Garros. Nadal brushed Starace aside for the loss of just four games in their only previous meeting in Buenos Aires earlier this year.

Starace’s task could be hampered by a high temperature but he is confident of being in shape for Thursday’s game.

“I’m feeling better today and I hope to be at my best for the game. It will be very special and emotional to play in the Naples area where I have played so much over the years,” he said.

“I know I am facing an opponent who has been very strong this season but I am aiming to make the most of my chances and I will certainly give my all,” said the Italian.

On Saturday Nadal pairs up with Feliciano Lopez to take on Daniele Bracciali and Giorgio Galimberti in the doubles match.

Spain, Davis Cup winners in 2000 and 2004, fell to a surprise 4-1 defeat by the Slovak Republic in the opening round of this year's competition but captain Jordi Arrese is confident that top-flight status can be retained.

“I was surprised by the absence of Volandri, who is the reason why Italy decided to play this tie on clay. We know that we are going to meet with an intense atmosphere and that it won’t be easy to win but our players are focused and know what they are here for. Italy deserve a lot of respect but we are hereto win and secure our place in the World Group,” added Arrese.

Italy captain Corrado Barazzutti is under no illusions about the task facing his team but expects a battling display.

“Spain are very strong opponents and are the favourites but we have prepared well, we are ready and we have trained well this week. We will face our rivals aiming to give our best and obtain a positive result,” he added.

Posted by nana at 2:50 AM

WILDCARD IN PALMERO

After the Davis Cup JC will play in Palmero (Sept. 26-Oct.2) where he has just received a wildcard.

>> article in Italian

Posted by nana at 4:47 AM

DAVIS CUP INFO

ITALY v SPAIN
Venue: Torre del Greco, Italy (clay – outdoors)

Italy
Daniele Bracciali
Giorgio Galimberti
Andreas Seppi
Potito Starace
Captain: Corrado Barazzutti

Spain
Rafael Nadal
David Ferrer
Juan Carlos Ferrero
Feliciano Lopez
Captain: Jordi Arrese

Posted by nana at 3:55 PM

ARTICLE Nadal mows down Ferrero to reach Beijing final

BEIJING (AFP) - Top seed Rafael Nadal dominated fellow Spaniard Juan Carlos Ferrero for the fourth time this season, producing a 6-4, 6-4 victory to reach the final of the 500,000-dollar China Open.

The reigning French Open champion will aim for a 10th title of 2005 -- equal to the output of Swiss rival Roger Federer -- on Sunday when he faces second seed Guillermo Coria.

The Argentine took his place in the afternoon as he saved three match points on the way to a 4-6, 7-5, 6-2 win over frustrated Swedish fourth seed Thomas Johansson.

The Nadal-Coria clash will be a re-run of the Italian Open final in Rome which Nadal claimed last May after nearly five hours of struggle with the South American.

The 19-year-old Nadal has yet to drop a set against Ferrero, who lifted his last title nearly two years ago in Madrid.

Nadal swept through unhindered, winning on his second match point in less than 90 minutes. "It was a good match for me," said the youngster, 71-10 this season.

"I had to play my best to beat Juan Carlos, he's a great player.

"It was not easy, but I had my chances. I'm happy with how well I've played here.

"I came to China unsure of my form after the US Open, where I played badly. This was my best match of the week by far. In the final, anything can happen, it will be the first time I've played Coria on a hardcourt."

Nadal stretched his current win streak to 21 against fellow Spaniards, with his last loss to a compatriot coming in Stuttgart in 2004, against David Ferrer.

[...]


Nadal: “Ferrero is a very good player. The break at 4-4 was important for my confidence and in the second set I felt a bit better. I think I played my best match of the week today so I’m happy. I improved my level a lot.”

Ferrero: “Nadal runs so much and I have to be so aggressive to win points. I think I missed a lot of balls where I tried to finish the point in the middle of the court. I had a lot of chances to finish points and I missed them and gave him a lot of free points. It was a close match but I think I missed too much.”

Posted by nana at 2:58 AM

TOURNAMENT RESULTS

Juan Carlos Ferrero sealed his spot in the semifinals with an impressive first career win over David Nalbandian, advancing with 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 win in 1 hour, 51 minutes of high quality tennis.

The Spaniard struck five aces and saved his best tennis for key moments, saving seven of eight break points throughout.

[...]

Ferrero: “I lost against him the last two times that I had met him. He’s a very good player and all the matches are very close against him. I think today we played a very good match, we showed very good tennis so I’m pretty happy with the win and hopefully I can keep going in the next round.”

On Nadal next:
“He’s playing very well and he has the confidence from winning tournaments on hard like in Montreal. It will be first time I play him on hard so it will be different for both of us. I’ll try and do my best and play better than I have against him in the past when I thought I had good chances to beat him.”

Posted by nana at 5:23 AM

ARTICLE Nadal, Ferrero, Moya, Nalbandian, Johansson advance in Beijing

[...]

Nadal's countrymen Juan Carlos Ferrero and Carlos Moya also advanced, along with seeds No. 3 David Nalbandian and No. 4 Thomas Johansson.

Ferrero beat Dmitry Tursunov 6-4, 7-6 (4), withstanding 15 aces by the Russian, and saving eight of 10 break points.

"I'm on the right track but there are a lot of great players in this tournament," said sixth-seeded Ferrero, who faces Nalbandian in the quarter-finals.

Nalbandian cruised to a 6-4, 6-0 victory over Israeli qualifier Amir Hadad, winning the last eight games to wrap up the second round match in 50 minutes.

"The next match will be different," Nalbandian said of Ferrero, "and I think both of us have the same chance to win."

>> full article

Posted by nana at 9:12 AM

ORDER OF PLAY Wednesday Sept. 14

Center Court - Matches Start at 1:00 PM

Rafael NADAL (ESP) vs Yeu-Tzuoo WANG (TPE)

followed by

Dmitry TURSUNOV (RUS) vs Juan Carlos FERRERO (ESP)

Posted by nana at 8:08 AM

PHOTO CALL Spaniards Explore Beijing

China Open top seed Rafael Nadal of Spain and compatriots Juan Carlos Ferrero and Carlos Moya all got a taste of Chinese culture on Tuesday as they were given a tour of the Forbidden City in Beijing.

The three players, all Roland Garros champions, donned traditional empirical Chinese costumes and posed in front of hordes of photographers in the main square. The players then took a private tour of the royal temple before stopping by Tiananmen Square on the way back to their hotel.

All three players will be in action on Wednesday.

Ferrero: "It's great to be able to see these places when we're at tournaments so we try and take time to see interesting parts of the city. It's also a great opportunity to promote the tournament."

Moya: "It's a great experience, I love to know new places. Last year I wasn't able to so this year I wanted to visit the forbidden city and I'm also looking forward to going to the great wall. I really like these places so I'm looking forward to it."

Nadal: "It's not every day that we can come here so it's a great opportunity to see some of the sites. The costumes are great, very unique."

>> view pictures

LoL... looks like they had fun ^^

Posted by nana at 4:05 AM

ARTICLE Ferrero progresses in China Open

Former world number one Juan Carlos Ferrero of Spain beat South Korean Lee Hyung-Taik in the first round of the China Open on Monday.

The sixth seed ground out a 4-6 6-3 7-5 victory to reach the second round.

He avoided a second straight exit in the first round after the US Open where he lost to France's Arnaud Clement.

Ferrero's fellow Spaniard Carlos Moya, seeded eighth, edged to a tense 7-6 (8-6) 6-3 victory over Thailand's Paradorn Srichaphan.

Posted by nana at 9:47 AM

CHINA OPEN DRAW JC will face Hyung-Taik Lee in the first round of the China Open. Seeded players in JC's half: Nadal, Nalbandian and Hrbaty.

>> full draw

Posted by nana at 3:43 AM

DAVIS CUP NEWS JC has been selected for the Davis Cup team along with Nadal, Ferrer and Lopez. Spain with face Italy in the World Group Play-offs (Sept. 23-25).

The Spanish captains are still undecided whether JC or Ferrer will play the second singles rubber.

Posted by nana at 7:07 PM

INTERVIEW "ME HACE ILUSIÓN VOLVER AL EQUIPO DE COPA DAVIS"

Ha realizado una buena temporada y vuelve a estar en forma. Por eso espera la llamada de los capitanes Avendaño y Arrrese para disputar la semana que viene en Nápoles la eliminatoria ante Italia: "Jugar con España es un orgullo".


Le veo animado para afrontar el torneo de Pekín.
Sí, viajo mañana mismo y me encuentro en forma. Además creo que estoy realizando una buena temporada.

¿Decepcionado por caer en primera ronda en el US Open?
No es muy gustoso ser eliminado a las primeras de cambio y más cuando estaba jugando muy bien en los torneos anteriores, pero hay que aceptarlo. No tuve el día, no jugué bien y no hay que darle más vueltas.

Y se llevó un duro mazazo.
No hay que dramatizar por esta eliminación. La temporada me va muy bien. Empecé el 98 del mundo, ahora estoy el 20 y he jugado a un gran nivel en muchos partidos.

¿Por fin ha recuperado la confianza en su juego?
Sí. Hace tiempo que estoy jugando bien, pero es muy complicado enfrentarse en las primeras rondas de todos los torneos a los cabezas de serie.

El lunes o martes Avendaño y Arrese facilitarán el equipo para jugar ante Italia. ¿Estará en la lista?
Ojalá. Jugar con España es un orgullo y una motivación especial, pero no depende de mí. La decisión es de los capitanes y hay muchos jugadores como Ferrer, Verdasco y Feliciano que también tienen opciones. Lo que puedo asegurar es que si me convocan lucharé con todas mis fuerzas.

¿Sueña con volver al equipo de Copa Davis?
Soñar no, pero me haría mucha ilusión regresar al equipo nacional para disputar una eliminatoria tan decisiva.

Le van a llamar, pero ¿merece estar en Nápoles.
Durante el año he jugado a un buen nivel, pero los demás también. Ahora mismo el único que tiene el puesto seguro es Rafa Nadal por la temporada fantástica que está realizando.

¿Se llevaría una decepción si no le convocarán?
Una decepción no. Ya he vivido situaciones parecidas en mis propias carnes y sé cómo reaccionar.

¿Con Avendaño y Arrese está ya todo solucionado?
No hubo nada que arreglar. Las cosas pasaron así y no había que solucionar nada.

Pero en la final de Sevilla hubo cosas que no le gustaron.
De eso ya se habló en su momento y todo está solucionado.

Vamos de favoritos, pero la eliminatoria ante Italia será muy complicada.
Seguro. En Nápoles el público apoya y grita mucho y tienen un buen grupo de jugadores que juegan bien en tierra. A priori somos superiores, pero tenemos que demostrarlo en la pista.

¿Acabará la temporada entre los diez primeros?
Hay mucha diferencia con el décimo, pero lo voy a intentar ya que en Madrid y París tengo muy pocos puntos que defender.

¿Qué tal le va con Patricia?
Fenomenal. Es la mujer de mi vida. Dijeron que estaba con Sharapova, pero no le di importancia. Es mi amiga y se entrena en mi academia, nada más.

>> Google translation

Posted by nana at 7:00 AM