Today is the official draw for the Davis Cup first-round World Group tie between Canada and France.
There doesn’t appear much to be determined at Van Lawn at noon. Both teams seem to have their lineups set.
France will go with Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Gael Monfils in singles. Michael Llodra and Julien Benneteau in doubles. Canada will counter with Milos Raonic and Vasek Pospisil in singles and Nestor and Pospisil in doubles.
Any concern over Monfils’s right knee seems to have quickly dissipated. Frank Dancevic would be a hugely surprising selection over Pospisil for Martin Laurendeau.
Friday match-ups in singles will be the No. 1s vs. No. 2s — Raonic and Monfils, and Pospisil and Tsonga. Saturday is doubles followed by reverse singles (No. 1 vs. No. 1; No. 2 vs. No. 2) on Sunday.
All that’s left to determine then, barring surprises, is which match goes first on Friday?
But that is not necessarily a small point.
Consider Nestor’s remarks following his famous victory over Stefan Edberg at the Agrodome in 1992, the last year Davis Cup was in Vancouver.
“[I] felt a lot better after Grant [Connell] won,” he said then. “That was a big reason I was relaxed.”
Connell was up first in ’92 and defeated No. 15 Magnus Gustafsson in three tough sets. Nestor followed up with the unthinkable, winning 4-6, 6-3, 1-6, 6-3, 6-4 over the world’s top-ranked player.
So, when you think about what the best draw is for Canada today, you have to consider the pressure these guys are under and what would best calm their nerves.
For Raonic to go out first and beat Monfils is a huge task, but certainly a matchup Canada believes they can win. On the fast court at UBC, with Raonic’s cannon serve, he will be very tough to break.
And if Raonic could somehow pull it off, that would allow Pospisil to feel even less pressure, and it would heap a huge amount on Tsonga.
Of course, if Raonic were to go first and lose, the dynamics change. But, from a psychological standpoint, the opportunity for a 2-0 start to Day 1 — however big a stretch that is — seems greater if Raonic opens play.
Either way, Raonic has a great shot at beating Monfils and Pospisil will have a heck of a time hanging with Tsonga.
An opening day split would be a terrific start for the Canadians.
