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History repeats, in Davis Cup centenary year

The impressive, modern national indoor arena has little in common with the Longwood Cricket Club in Boston where the Davis Cup started 99 years ago.

Yet the word "cricket'' may be the significent link.

The Brits are back in the world group of tennis to face the United States. Thus, the two nations who met for the title back in 1900 meet again as the championship celebrates its centenary.

And, although British tennis has been in the doldrums for nearly a decade, it now has two highly-ranked players, Tim Henman and Greg Rusedski, who have the ability to win the match and earn a world group second round match against either Australia or Zimbabwe.

Standing in their way are experienced Davis Cup players Jim Courier and Todd Martin, doubles expert Alex o'Brien and Jan-Martin Gambill, who has played only one previous match. Pete Sampras and Andre Agassi, the two biggest names in US tennis, have declined to play.

While some 1,200 fans attended one of the oldest tennis clubs in Boston each day to cheer an American victory in 1900, sellout crowds of 9,400 will be screaming the Brits onto what they hope will be a long-overdue triumph at the 8-year-old arena in the industrial heartland of England.

"I think it's kind of poetic for the US and Britain to be playing in the 100th year of the Davis Cup,'' said Courier.

"We'd like to have played the tie on our home soil where the first tie was played, but it's going to be interesting to get on with the Brits.

"Davis Cup tennis is as pure as it comes. It's like going back in time and it's like being part of the history of the game.''

Win or lose, the Americans will be going back to the Longwood Club anyway for the next stage, either in round two or the relegation round.

For Henman and Rusedski, who are trying to earn top five places as individuals on the ATP tour, there is the opportunity to team up under the British flag and give the nation back some pride in world tennis.

Britain last played in the world group in 1992 and slipped down to the European zone two relegation round before climbing back up to the world's top 16.

Team captain David Lloyd even complained that Britain, with two players in the world's top eleven, should have been seeded in the world group which would have meant avoiding the US in the first round.

Because britain doesn't have the same strength in depth as the other 15 teams, Henman and Rusedski expectedly will play all the singles matches and also team up in the doubles.

They rarely play as a doubles team but are ideally suited as a right-hander and left-hander and they even won an indoor tournament at Battersea, London, in February.

Because Martin is hampered by a stomach muscle injury, all four of the American team could see action at the NIA.

"My priority is to play two singles matches,'' Martin said. "To play three matches (including the doubles) would affect my chances of playing on Sunday.''

Gambill boosted his chances of making the doubles pairing by reaching the final of the Lipton Championship last weekend in partnership with Boris Becker.

AP