Pinoy netters, visiting Kiwis brace for tough Davis Cup finals showdown

CEBU, Philippines -  The Pinoy netters and their Kiwi rivals both expressed confidence of winning when they face each other in the keenly-awaited Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group II finals on September 13-15 at the Plantation Bay Resort and Spa in Lapu-Lapu City.

Johnny Arcilla, US Open doubles quarterfinalist Treat Condrad Huey, Ruben Gonzales and Francis Casey Alcantara comprising the Cebuana Lhuillier-backed Philippine squad all excited for the upcoming battle, unmindful of the heavy burden they bear as they spearhead the country's quest to return to the top tier in tennis.

Head-to-head, the 42-ranked Philippines enjoys a 3-2 lead over New Zealand, the 39th best nation on Davis Cup ratings, in their previous five meetings, but the Kiwis prevailed over the Filipinos via a 5-0 shutout in their most recent encounter two years ago.

But Phl team captain Ronald Kraut said that stinging setback is already a thing of the past and that they are focused at the task at hand - defending the country's fort against the invading Kiwi forces.

“Nakalimutan na naming yung past. On paper, oo malakas sila but in the Davis Cup, iba na ang magiging usapan dyan. Iba na yung meron kang crowd support. Also, we are used to this kind of surface and the players are well-prepared,” said Kraut in a chat with reporters yesterday at Plantation Bay.

Huey is coming off an impressive showing in the US Open doubles, while birthday boy Gonzales had been to Europe for some competitions. The US-based Alcantara sharpened his skillsby playing in the NCAA, while Arcilla is unbeaten in major events he joined in here.

“Playing in the US Open and reaching the quarterfinals is a good momentum going into the Davis Cup. We’re all very excited for this. We’re better prepared and playing at home here in Plantation Bay is a big factor. We have the court to our advantage,” said Huey.

Except for Alcantara, most of the Phl players have already fought against the pros from New Zealand in the mold of Michael Venus, Artem Sitak, Marcus Daniell, and Jose Statham, but the 20-year-old racquet-wielder from Cagayan de Oro vowed to give his best, if not better his performance during the Phl-Thailand tie last April.

"Pressure is always there because we aspire to win so we can get back into Group I. This is even tougher than our previous game, but as far as out preparation is concerned, we're ready," said Arcilla, who will be honored with the David Cup "Commitment" award for being the longest serving national team player.

The Kiwis, however, are unfazed by the Pinoys' so-called homecourt magic.

“We’ve played on different surfaces and we’ve played all year-round. Besides, the games will be played late afternoon and evening so I don’t think the court and the weather would be a problem,” said Venus. “We would like to take one match at a time. The outcome will just take care of it. This is a new tie, a new team to beat.”

Statham, for his part, made a late decision to join the New Zealand squad, but said he's in tip-top shape.

 â€œIt’s the Davis Cup finals.We want to strengthen the team, so I decided to play again,” said Statham.

The winner of the Phl-New Zealand match will be promoted to the elite Group I in the 2014 season. Phl was demoted from Group I after suffering back-to-back losses to Japan and Chinese-Taipei in 2011, but wins over Syria, 3-2, and Thailand, 4-1, last April vaulted the Pinoys on the brink of return. (FREEMAN)