Sport - Tennis

Querrey takes on Nadal in opening singles

— Photo: AP

MEETING A LEGEND: Argentina’s Guillermo Canas (right) gets a pat from Diego Maradona at a training session on Wednesday.

MADRID: American Sam Querrey, ranked 39, will face a stiff test in his first ever Davis Cup match when he meets Spain’s World No. 1 Rafael Nadal in the opening encounter of the semifinal tie in Madrid on Friday.

They will be followed on court by Spain’s fifth-ranked David Ferrer and Andy Roddick, ranked eight, organisers announced on Thursday.

Saturday’s doubles will pit Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco against the U.S. pairing of Mike Bryan and Mardy Fish.

In Sunday’s reverse singles, Querrey will play Ferrer while Nadal will face Roddick, a player the Spaniard beat four years ago when he was just 18, helping his country to its only its second ever Davis Cup trophy.

The 20-year-old Querrey, who has lost both his previous meetings with Nadal, was a late replacement for World No. 9 James Blake, who withdrew from the U.S. squad, citing exhaustion.

But Nadal, who this year has already won the French Open, Wimbledon and an Olympic gold medal, was taking nothing for granted.

Meanwhile, World No.7 David Nalbandian will take on Igor Andreev, the world’s 19th-ranked player, in the opening rubber of the semifinal between Argentina and Russia in Buenos Aires.

“We are looking good, we have been training hard and are in good form,” said Nalbandian.

Teenager Juan Martin del Potro, World No. 13, will then face World No. 6 Nikolay Davydenko on the opening day of a tie which will also decide the host of the 2008 final.

Del Potro said he was not worried about going on second. “It’s the same if you play first or second. I am not bothered. There will be a little pressure on me as a home player but that’s all,” the youngster told reporters. — Agencies

© Copyright 2000 - 2009 The Hindu