Olympics: Federer gives fans two reasons to cheer
Switzerland's Roger Federer has made a great start to the Olympic tennis singles, beating Germany's David Prinosil in straight sets. He has also given a further boost to the national game, agreeing to join next season's Davis Cup team.
Federer’s decision to continue playing for Switzerland will be a great relief to the Swiss Davis Cup captain Jakob Hlasek. Hlasek came under fire from the country’s top players after he removed the Swiss number one Marc Rosset from the team.
Hlasek stated at the time that he wanted to concentrate on developing the younger players, but Federer’s latest announcement doesn’t mean that the youngsters have been won over yet.
“I’m still not completely happy to have Hlasek as the captain,” Federer said on Wednesday, “but I want to defend my country’s colours, no matter what the cost.”
After receiving Federer’s blessing, the vice-president of the Swiss tennis association, René Stammbach, will now hold talks with the other members of the team. A return for Rosset is also a possibility.
“Contacts with Rosset have not been broken off”, Stammbach confirmed. “But the situation is clear. He is welcome to play in the team if the accepts Jakob Hlasek’s orders. Hlasek’s position is not in question.”
In contrast to the protracted off court negotiations, Federer made a brief and effective appearance in the Olympic first round. The Basel teenager beat Prinosil 6-2, 6-2 in just 52 minutes.
Federer showed a high level of concentration in the match, and was particularly strong in his serve. He lost just 10 points in his eight service games, and didn’t allow his opponent a single break point.
“Of course I’m delighted with the manner in which I played,” Federer said after the match. “I couldn’t have hoped for more.”
In the second round Federer will meet Slovakia’s Karel Kucera, who upset Britain’s Tim Henman in his first round encounter. Federer will be favourite to win Friday’s match. He is ranked eight places higher than the Slovakian, who he beat last October in the quarter-finals of the Vienna indoor tournament.
“It’s always an advantage to take on an opponent who you have got the better of in the past,” Federer admitted. “But I had no preference for playing either Kucera or Henman. The pressure will be the same.”
With the Swiss tennis association still smarting from the decision of three of its top stars to stay away from Sydney, Federer’s support has been soothing. On Wednesday he told journalists how significant he thought the Games were.
“I have no intention of shirking here in Sydney,” he promised. “In my opinion the Games are more important than a Grand Slam tournament.”
As Federer looked forward to his next Olympic challenge, Miroslava Vavrinec was contemplating the end of her Olympic dream. The Swiss wild card was unable to disguise the difference in class between her and her opponent, Russia’s Elena Dementieva.
The US Open semi-finalist, seeded 10th for the Olympics, blew Vavrinec off the court in just 48 minutes, winning by a landslide (6-1, 6-1).
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