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The ball's in our court

Canada versus Spain
in Davis Cup
By Elliot Chan, Contributor

ince Milos Raonic was

knocked out by Roger
Federer in the fourth round
of the Australian open, he
has turned his attention back
home in preparation for the
Davis Cup. The Ontario native
will team up with BC’s Vasek
Pospisil, Niagara Falls’ Frank
Dancevic, and Canadian tennis
veteran Daniel Nestor to
compete against the first seeded
nation, Spain, at the Doug
Mitchell Thunderbird Sports
Centre at UBC on February 1-3.

Though the Spanish team
will be missing the prestigious
Rafael Nadal due to injury, they
are still a formidable group.
Nicolas Almagro, the 11 seeded
singles player, former doubles
champions Marc Lopez and
Marcel Granollers, and 51
seeded Albert Ramos will be a
handful for the Canadians.

“Spain is going to be a real
challenge,” said Canadian team
captain, Martin Laurendeau.
“They are the top team in the
world with incredible depth.
They have 13 players in the top
100 alone so no matter what
team they’re bringing, it will be
stacked with talent.”

The winner of the three days
will advance to the quarterfinals
in April. Meanwhile the loser
will fall into a survival bracket,
where they will play a must-win
tie in order to compete in the

World Group in the next Davis
Cup tournament in 2014.

The Canadians’ main cause
for apprehension is Raonic’s
health. He was showing signs
of a foot ailment during his
lost to Federer. But Laurendeau
assured that it was nothing to be
concerned about. “He’s fine, no
worries about Milos,” he said.

It has been 22 years since
Canada faced Spain. It was the
only time the two nations had
contended against each other in
the competition. The result went
in favour of the Europeans, who
won the tie 4-1 in Murcia, Spain.
Although the Spanish team had
won 10 out of 14 ties in their
homeland, traveling abroad has
been a problem. They lost in the
finals 2-3 last year against the
Czech Republic team in Prague.

Canada, on the other hand,
is entering the competition on
a positive note. They defeated
South Africa 4-1 in September to
keep their position in the higher
tier. The same quartet that
secured their spot in the World
Group last year is entering
the same challenge this year.
Should Canada upset Spain in
the first round, they will have an
opportunity to face Croatia or
Italy in the quarterfinals.

Two singles matches are
scheduled for Friday the first,

a doubles match on Saturday,
and finally a reverse singles on
Sunday, where players swap
opponents. Tickets are now
being sold for both individual
days and as a three-day
package. There is also a 10% off
special for students.

Royals Roundup

By Josh Martin, Sports Editor

he men’s volleyball team went

undefeated this past weekend
with back-to-back 3-0 wins
against the COTR Avalanche. They
are currently in first place in the
standings by a hefty margin with a
stellar record of 19-1 and 38 points
in 20 games—14 points ahead of
the second placed VIU Mariners.
The boys have this weekend off
but will be facing the Mariners
next weekend on February 8 at 8
p.m. and February 9 at 3 p.m.

The women’s volleyball
team beat the Avalanche this
past Saturday 3-2 but lost in the
rematch on Sunday 3-0. They sit
in fifth place in the standings with
a 6-14 record and 12 points in 20
games. They face the Mariners

on February 8 at 6 p.m. and on
February 9 at 1 p.m.

The men’s basketball team
were defeated by the Quest
Kermodes, 97-83, this past Friday
but managed to beat the Capilano

The womens volleyball team beat the
Avalanche this past Saturday 3-2 but lost
in the rematch on Sunday 3-0.

Blues on Saturday by a score of
81-71. The Royals are fifth in the
standings with a 6-9 record and 12
points in 15 games. They face the
VIU Mariners this Friday at 8 p.m.
and the Camosun Chargers on

 

Milos Raonic at Wimbledon | Photo courtesy of AELTC

Saturday at 3 p.m.

The women’s basketball
team suffered a loss against the
Kermodes 49-48 last Friday and
another one against the Capilano
Blues on Saturday 63-49. They

are second in the standings with
a 10-5 record and 20 points in
15 games. The Royals host the
Mariners this Friday at 6 p.m.
and the Camosun Chargers on
Saturday at 1 p.m.

 

Photo courtesy of Jerald Walliser/Douglas College Athletics

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