No lobs allowed

Madrid to host Davis Cup semifinal

The United State Davis Cup team might have caught a break in its semifinal matchup with Spain this week when the Spanish tennis federation ignored pleas by its players and captain to not play in Madrid's bullring. The Spanish players had preferred a host city at a lower altitude than Madrid for the Sept. 19-21 matchup.

Rafael Nadal, the three-time French Open champion, was among eight Spanish players and captain Emilio Sanchez Vicario who signed an open letter this week denouncing the federation's process for choosing the host city. The team said Madrid's 2,100-foot altitude (roughly that of Las Vegas) will remove the team's home-court advantage and accused federation president Pedro Munoz of favoring the capital city because of sponsorship money.

The Spaniards are at their best on a slow clay surface, while the Americans -- led by hard-serving Andy Roddick -- are likely to benefit from the higher altitude speeding up play. It's the first time in 10 years that Madrid will host a Davis Cup match.

The players -- also including fifth-ranked David Ferrer and former French Open champion Carlos Moya -- have threatened to boycott all the promotional events for the federation and its sponsors as long as Munoz remains presidentt.

``The problem is not so much the altitude but ... at first he (Munoz) said he would adhere to the requests of the players and then he went back on his word. That is what hurt us, that he doesn't honor his promises,'' Sanchez Vicario told Radio Marca on Friday.

Madrid's selection came three months after the city's tourist office signed up as a key sponsor with the Davis Cup through 2010. Madrid also is bidding to host the 2016 Olympics.

Spaniards squabble over Davis Cup site

The defending Davis Cup champion United States team will face its toughest test so far when it travels to Spain in September to play on a clay surface that will be far from the American's liking. Or will it?

A note of discord seems to be threatening to throw the Spanish squad into disarray. Spanish press is reporting a disagreement between the Spanish players and the tennis federation on where to hold the Davis Cup semifinal against the U.S. The federation favors Madrid's Las Ventas bullring, but a majority of the potential team members want to play at a location with less altitude. Madrid's 2,100-foot makes it the highest capital city in Europe, and the altitiude could take away Spain's precious clay-court advantage. Spanish sporting newspaper Marca reports Davis Cup captain Emilio Sanchez has threatened to resign over the dispute unless the players' views are considered.

Madrid is one of four cities vying to host the Sept. 19-21 best-of-five series. Benidorm, Tenerife and Gijon are also trying to win the right to host the event. Madrid’s sudden place as the front-runner comes about three months after the city’s tourist office signed up as a key sponsor with the Davis Cup through 2010.

“What I know is that as of today it hasn’t been decided where the Davis Cup semifinal will be staged,” federation sporting director Javier Duarte said. “That which has the best specifics will take the semifinal.”

The U.S. defeated Spain on the hard court in Winston-Salem, N.C., last year, but the American's last trip to Spain did not turn out well. Spain edged the U.S. 3-2 in the Davis Cup Finals in 2004 in Seville after Andy Roddick lost to Carlos Moya, pictured above, and an 18-year-old Rafeal Nadal. Moya also defeated Mardy Fish.

The Spanish players believe the altitude in Madrid will enhance Roddick’s booming serve and help the hard-hitting doubles pair of Bob and Mike Bryan. The United States holds a 5-3 lead in the series between the two nations, but Spain is 3-1 in matches played on clay. The slowest of all playing surfaces, clay is a more physical surface with its lengthier baseline rallies due to balls taking on heavier topspin.

Juan Carlos Ferrero, who was part of the Spanish team that beat the Americans in Seville nearly four years ago for the title, said problems were brewing.

“We players want this to be solved in the best way possible, but if it has to be done the worse way, then it will be,” the former top-ranked player said from the Rome Masters.

The federation will make its decision Friday, but then has several days to relay its decision to the International Tennis Federation, which is expected to announce the host city by May 13.

Three-time French Open champion Rafael Nadal will play for Spain if is healthy. He has won 103 of his last 104 matches on clay.

-- Contains wire material

Photo credit: The Associated Press/Jasper Juinen

McEnroe wins first Outback title

John McEnroe won his first title on the Outback Champions Series at the $150,000 Champions Cup Boston Sunday, rallying from a set down to defeat fellow American Aaron Krickstein 5-7, 6-3, 10-5 (Champions Tie Break) in the championship match at the Agganis Arena. Playing in his 13th career event on the Outback Champions Series, the four-year-old senior circuit for players 30 and over, McEnroe earned $54,000 and 800 Champions Series points that enabled him to tie Jim Courier for the No. 1 spot in the Stanford Champions Rankings.

Courier won Sunday’s third-place match, defeating Wayne Ferreira of South Africa 6-4 6-2.

The 49-year-old McEnroe, who earlier this year said he would start to scale back his competitive tournament appearances, enjoyed an incredibly successful week in Boston, beating Courier 6-4, 6-4 on Thursday and handing seven-time Wimbledon champion Pete Sampras his first loss on the Outback Champions Series in a 2-6, 7-5, 10-4 (Champions Tie-Break) victory Friday night. His match with Krickstein on Sunday was highlighted by many long rallies and strong play from the baseline. In the first set, Krickstein broke McEnroe at 5-5 and hit three aces on his serve to take the opening set. McEnroe took the second set with his aggressive net play and rode the momentum to victory in the Champions Tie Break.

"For my favorite fan base –- 75-year old women -- this proves to you that you can still be young at an advanced age," said McEnroe, who previously lost Outback Champions Series singles finals in Boston in 2006, Newport, R.I., in 2007 and Naples, Fla., in 2008. "I've been playing for a couple of years with frustration and wondering if I was ever going to win again. If you had told me I would have to play Courier and Sampras, I thought I was screwed. Aaron was playing really well, but I found another gear in the tiebreaker. I knew I could win if I played the way I was capable of."

-- Outback Champions Series