TENNIS: Jon Swift
IT must be more than satisfying to captain Danie Visser that the 3-1 victory over Russia in the Durban Davis Cup tie was built on the success of the less heralded players rather than on the often overworked talents of Wayne Ferreira.
And, in the analysis, only Ferreira came out on the wrong side of the eventual scoreline, going down 2-6 6-7 (7/9) 2-6 to Andrei Chesnokov in a match that had no bearing on the eventual outcome.
That had already been assured by the 6-2 3-6 6-0 6-2 victory from the largely untested doubles pairing of Ellis Ferreira and Grant Stafford over Andrei Olhovsky and Andre Cherkasov, to give the South Africans an unassailable 3-0 lead.
Whether the combination is solid enough to beat the powerful Swedes in the quarter-final pencilled in for Malmo on April 4-6, has yet to be shown. But it is an indication that the base of our Davis Cup talent is broader than would have been imagined after the stunning loss to Italy last year.
The win also gave Visser and his squad some breathing space, ensuring this country’s place in the World Group for yet another year.
A loss to the Russians would have meant a round of matches to get back into the important stage of the competition.
It is an important edge to hold and one which gives the game in this country some time to start planning for the future. Even though Ellis Ferreira and Stafford have shown the way, the search for future international squad members must be foremost in the minds of all concerned.
The game of tennis in this country has only recently recovered from what could have been a death blow in the form of an administration which all but bankrupted the sport.
It is well then to weigh this revival against the importance of the win over the Russians, led by Marcos Ondruska’s 7-6 6-3 3-6 4-6 8-6 win in the opening singles over Chesnokov. And, having got that step ahead, Wayne Ferreira outlasted Cherkasov in a marathon match of four hours and 20 minutes for a 7-5 6-3 3-6 4-6 8-6 victory, which gave the local side the advantage of only needing one match from three for triumph.
But that long singles also meant that the option of using Ferreira in the doubles before what could have been a crucial reverse singles, began to look more and more like an exercise in diminishing returns.
Too much has been asked of Ferreira in the past and too much made of his inability to deliver under strains that many of the world’s top players – of which he is arguably one – would not even envisage enduring.
It is one thing to play for your country. It is an honour that Ferreira admits to enjoying immensely. But it is another entirely to be expected to carry that team almost alone.
It is well though not to discount the contribution that Ondruska has made to the run this country has enjoyed in the world’s national team premiership. His world ranking does his efforts in Davis Cup no justice. He is a far better player in these circumstances than his results in the tournaments about the globe would suggest, and it is well that Visser has shown such faith in him.
Ondruska’s continued heroics in this competition could just spill over into his everyday play and give him the impetus to take a step up as a professional. One would sincerely hope this to be the case.
But most important, the success in Durban gave notice that at last, the burden has started to lift and that Visser can call on others to fill in the gaps in the cracks that appear when Wayne Ferreira’s psyche falters.
In this light, we await the quarter-final tie in Sweden with enthusiasm yet a certain amount of trepidation. It all worked in Durban against a Russian team hampered by injury and cut to three men.
Against the Swedes it promises to be a far more difficult hurdle to negotiate.