‘South Africa Well Prepared For Davis Cup Clash Against Morocco’

Having spent much clip unneurotic than usual, skipper Pietie Norval is assured that the Renault SA Davis Cup squad is acceptable to look Morocco successful a important World Group II necktie astatine Groenkloof Tennis Club successful Pretoria connected Saturday and Sunday.

The nationalist squad arrived successful Pretoria past Saturday, a week earlier the tie, and Norval stated they had prepared good for the clash arsenic they question to determination person to World Group I. “We really got unneurotic a time earlier than accustomed due to the fact that we wanted to beryllium adjacent amended prepared than we person been successful the past, and that made a important difference,” Norval said connected Thursday.

“Some of our players came successful from little altitudes and needed the other time to acclimatise. Overall, we felt our mentation for this necktie required enhancement. Everything is successful bully bid wrong the team. We person a mates of newcomers for this tie, and with the other time and a greater accent connected high-intensity grooming implicit the past 5 days, I judge the guys are the champion prepared they person ever been.”
The five-member Renault SA squad includes Alec Beckley and 19-year-old Leo Matthysen, some of whom person acquisition competing successful the Davis Cup. The different 3 members of the squad – Thando Longwe-Smit, experienced 30-year-old Marc van der Merwe, and 17-year-old imaginable Connor Doig – volition beryllium hoping to marque their Davis Cup debuts.

Although they are heading into the necktie with a young team, missing immoderate higher-ranked players owed to injuries oregon unavailability, Beckley believes the hosts are acceptable to enactment up a combat against Morocco.

“I deliberation it does enactment a small spot much unit connected us, but I judge we are good prepared and cognize what to do,” said Beckley, the SA team’s top-ranked player.

“We realise the situation, and Pietie has been moving good with us. Everything is successful place, truthful we are not worrying astir ‘what ifs’. This is our team, and we volition marque the champion of it; we consciousness assured successful our capabilities this weekend.”

Morocco, ranked 7 places supra South Africa successful the Davis Cup rankings, is besides assured heading into the tie, contempt competing successful unfamiliar conditions. Taha Baadi, Morocco’s top-ranked player, mentioned they had spent a week grooming successful Ifrane (more than 300m higher successful altitude than Pretoria) and had acclimatised good to the conditions since arriving successful South Africa’s superior city.

“Fortunately, we spent a week successful Ifrane for training, and we person adjusted to the breathing facet and deed immoderate balls, which eased our transition,” Baadi said. “It took america a mates of days to acclimatise aft arriving successful Pretoria, but present we consciousness we are each adjusted. We’ll find retired connected Saturday if we are genuinely acclimatised, but we are each successful bully spirits.”

The gully for the necktie betwixt South Africa and Morocco volition instrumentality spot astatine the Garden Court edifice successful Hatfield connected Friday. The winners of this weekend’s contention volition advancement to the World Group I promotion playoffs, portion the losing broadside volition vie successful the World Group II relegation playoffs.