From: kknox@convex.com (W. Keith Knox)
Subject: Late Davis Cup stuff
Date: Sun, 13 Dec 1992 02:12:27 GMT
Organization: Engineering, CONVEX Computer Corp., Richardson, Tx., USA
X-Disclaimer: This message was written by a user at CONVEX Computer
              Corp. The opinions expressed are those of the user and
              not necessarily those of CONVEX.

Sorry for this late and rambling post, but I don't get the
chance to post too often. Hey, I gotta work sometime! :-)

faa@athena.cs.wayne.edu (Felicitas A. Atabong) writes:

>stuff deleted...

>No offense, U.S.A, but I just have
>this nagging feeling that maybe, just maybe, if Switzerland had two more
>players of Rosset or Hlasek's ranking, the U.S.A may have lost it.

This my be true. However, if Courier hadn't been so tired from trying to
keep his #1 spot, he probably wouldn't have lost to Rosset.

But as you say, the Swiss did put up a GREAT fight. I was there, and I
loved every minute of it. Even though I was rooting for the USA (my homeland)
I have great respect for the Swiss team and their fans. There were about 1,100
Swiss fans and they were as loud as the 10,000 American fans! Particularly
with those cow bells! :-)


gaf5@ns1.cc.lehigh.edu (Gail A. Fullman) writes:

>stuff deleted...

>A rested Hlasek taking on Courier;  a different outcome more likely.  Just
>imagine, a fifth and deciding match between a rested Rosset (big server)
>against a rested Agassi (good returner), we can only dream!

Yes, I would have liked to see this match too. Actually they didn't
even announce to the audience that there wasn't going to be a fifth
match, but by then, the court was pretty well trashed with all of the
fireworks and confety that went off during the awards ceremony.

>shun@cbnewsh.cb.att.com (shun.cheung) writes:

>stuff deleted...

>Agassi, on the other hand, is just the opposite; in 1992, he plays his best
>tennis in Davis Cup matches (maybe except for Wimbledon).

Yes, the Davis Cup seems to suit Agassi's style and personality. He often
talks about not being able to "get up" for first round matches against 
players who he considers as "nobodys." 

> clin@eng.umd.edu (Charles Lin) writes:

>Some of those Swiss "cowbells" put the Ecuadorian ones (the ones which were used
>in support of Gomez) to shame.

Very true! Some of them kept rattling even after the person
quit shaking them. Bruno Rubo (sp?) in the chair kept stairing
back at one fellow with a particularly loud bell. The US crowd would
then point at him. Then the Swiss in the same area would point back
at the US crowd to try to confuse the umpire. It was quite humorous.

> clin@eng.umd.edu (Charles Lin) for koller@tarheel.aud.alcatel.com writes:

>This is the second year in a row that the davis cup finals did
>not include a fifth match.

>My guess is that Agassi really does not want to play a davis
>cup match if the tie has already been decided.

>While I can't blame him, what about the fans that have paid
>good money to see the fifth match?

>I heard that he used the excuse of a possible injury to wuss
>out, but then he plays lucrative exhibitions...

>Perhaps there should be an agreement among the Davis Cup
>Players as to who should play the dead-rubber matches, which
>may be anti-climatic but still have importance...

>Brian Koller

Well, I did drive all the way to Fort Worth for the matches on Sunday and
I did pay quite a bit of money for the tickets. I would have certainly been
disappointed if there had been no matches at all on Sunday, but since the
score of the tie was 2-1, they had to play at least one match.

While I would have liked to see Agassi and Rosset play, it certainly
would have been very anticlimatic, plus the court was in shambles
after the confety and fireworks went off...

I have a feeling that some kind of exhibition would have been played
on Sunday if the US had won the first 3 matches. It would have been
nice if they had made some sort of statement to this effect.


It was nice to hear McEnroe say the the Davis Cup final crowd was the
best for the US that he could ever remember. Getting to go was the high
point of my year.

We were hanging out after the big doubles match to watch Mary Carillo interview
the players and coaches. (Boy, she sure is thin for such a deep voice.)
As we were heading for the door, I heard some shouts as Courier and McEnroe
walked up right beside me to towards the exit. Cool. The funny part was that
some Swiss fan gave McEnroe a high-five. The Swiss man then fell to the ground
yelling, "YES! I got to touch Big Mac!" It was hilarious!

As Courier walked by, I noticed how bright his hair color was. On TV it looks
red, but not very bright. Up close and in person, his hair looked flouresent
orange!

There have been a few posts saying that tennis should not be a country vs
country sport, and I agree with that for the most part. But on the other
hand, I wouldn't trade my Davis Cup experience for anything! Hey, I even
got on TV a few times. I was two rows up for the folks who had the signs
that said "ESPN #1" and "GO AGASSI, LET's KICK SOME ALPS!" And yes, I
taped the matches and later looked for myself. This may be a bit hokey,
but hey, I wanted to get the most out of this experience that I could. :-)