MADRID // The Spanish world No 1 Rafael Nadal is looking forward to the unusual setting for this weekend's Davis Cup semi-final against the United States, which he expects will be an "unforgettable" experience. The contest will take place at the awe-inspiring Plaza de Toros de Las Ventas in Madrid, an arena normally reserved solely for bullfighting.
For someone whose career has largely been limited to traditional tennis venues, Nadal is looking forward to the chance to play in the 24,000-capacity bullring. "It is going to be an unforgettable experience to play in an arena like Las Ventas," he said. "It is special to play at home and more so in a place like this." Nadal, 22, will be the big draw in the Spanish capital after a remarkable season which has seen the Mallorcan win eight tournaments - including the French Open, Wimbledon and Olympic gold - while replacing Roger Federer as the world No 1.
His hopes of adding the US Open title to his list of achievements was ended by his semi-final defeat to the Briton Andy Murray earlier this month. Nadal also boasts an impressive Davis Cup singles record, having won eight of his nine matches and six out of six on clay. If Spain are victorious against the defending champions they will be through to a sixth final. "It's true that I've had an intense season, but to play at home against the United States in a Davis Cup semi-final is an extra motivation for me," said Nadal.
"I cannot judge how I am yet. There are three-and-a-half days remaining, but you need to be at your best because it is going to be a difficult match." The US have added Mardy Fish to their squad after the doubles player Bob Bryan was ruled out through injury. Bryan is recovering in the States after receiving a cortisone shot for an inflamed left shoulder. "I aggravated it pretty bad at the US Open and only made things worse," he said.
"I knew if I wanted a chance to play the rest of this year, I had to shut it down now. I can't even hit any balls." It will be the first time in 16 Davis Cup matches that Bryan and his twin brother, Mike, will not have played together. Fish, ranked 23 in the world, practised on the clay surface with Mike Bryan yesterday and could line up with him in the doubles. The other team members are Andy Roddick and Sam Querrey.
"When you have a pair like the Bryans that know each other well and consolidate each other, a match against them is always difficult," the Spain captain Emilio Sanchez Vicario said. "But Fish reached the quarters of the Australian and US Opens and comes with talent even if he doesn't play doubles in a consistent fashion." The best-of-five series begins on Friday with two singles matches, followed by the doubles on Saturday and reverse singles Sunday.
Bryan's withdrawal is the second high-profile loss for the American team. The singles player James Blake, who has been a regular on the team since 2005, pulled out last week citing exhaustion, making way for Querrey. Though Spain appear the overwhelming favourite now, Sanchez Vicario said the team were doing some adjusting of their own to the Spanish capital's high altitude. "It is something that influences the game very much, but we feel positive here and we will look to play the best we can," he said.
"We came here early to accustom ourselves to it." Igor Andreev said Russia are capable of defeating Argentina in the other semi-final. The world No 19 is expected to be one of the two singles players in Shamil Tarpischev's team to play at the Estadio Parque Roca in Buenos Aires. Andreev is confident the team are good enough to claim victory. "It will be extremely tough because Argentina have great players and their fans will be behind them," he said.
"However, we have a good team too and we'll surely battle until the end. We feel we can win. "I played [Juan Martin] Del Potro once and lost this year in Munich. I have not played [David] Nalbandian. Del Potro is playing in great form and he has recently won four tournaments in a row, so he has confidence ahead of the tie. "David is not enjoying his best form but he is a very dangerous player anyway. He can be back to his best at any moment.
"The crowd will be important. The surface is not an advantage for them, but their people are." * Agencies
