Tennis: Spain's strength in numbers

By TERRY MADDAFORD

What would New Zealand tennis give just to have one of Spain's top 10 players?

New Zealand have only Mark Nielsen in Melbourne for next week's Australian Open, needing a really big effort just to get through qualifying, which started yesterday.

Spain have between 12 and 14 players in the 128-strong main draw and another half-dozen in the qualifying tournament.

Yet, despite their strength - 13 players inside the top 100 at the end of 2000 - it was not until last year that Davis Cup success came their way.

Their closest result before that was runner-up a couple of times in the mid-60s.

But their triumph over Australia in Barcelona did not come without some off-court controversy.

Juan Balcells, among those forced to sit and watch the rain fall on what should have been the fourth day of the Heineken Open at Stanley St on Thursday, emerged as an unlikely hero.

Ranked only ninth among the Spaniards in singles for much of the year - he eventually ended the ATP Champions Race as their 12th best in 86th place - Balcells, and Alex Corretja, became the first-choice Davis Cup doubles pair. Their only loss was to Russians Marat Safin and Yevgeny Kafelnikov en route to Spain's 4-1 quarter-final triumph.

Balcells was a Davis Cup hero from the start. Though some of their top players chose not to make the December 1999 trek to New Zealand for the tie in Hamilton, which became the launching pad for Spain's eventual success, Balcells journeyed Down Under and, with Julian Alonso, beat James Greenhalgh and Brett Steven in the doubles.

But as the campaign went on and interest grew, more of the leading Spanish players wanted a part of the action.

Carlos Moya and Albert Costa wanted to play - but there was a reluctance to make changes. Moya, a former World No. 1, was not happy, but was at the Barcelona final - as a spectator.

"Moya was a little bit annoyed," said Balcells. "He thought he was going to play, but the captains did not want to change."

The final, played on a clay court laid on top of the court in Barcelona's main basketball stadium, was a sellout.

"We had a record crowd and the atmosphere was great," said Balcells.

He and Corretja beat Mark Woodforde and Sandon Stolle in the crucial doubles after Lleyton Hewitt had beaten Costa, and Juan Carlos Ferrero had toppled Pat Rafter in the opening singles. The tie was wrapped up in the first of the reverse singles when Ferrero beat Hewitt.

"The reaction after that was like being in a country which has just won the World Cup," said Balcells. "We were all taken to meet the King and Queen. People stopped us in the street.

"It was a big, long party."

But like his team-mates, Balcells does not know if he will play again.

"Our three captains will be in Australia and will name the team to play Holland indoors in February after the Australian Open. I would like to play, but we have so many good players."

Just one would do us nicely, thank you.