[*julie*]

Yes the single should be decided between Bennet and Jérémy. It would be crazy to trust Llodra again for a single match on clay.
I would be happy to see Jérémy winning a match for his first selection.
Anyway, good luck to them.

[Silver.]

Oh god this is going to be really tough, I want the French to win it this year, they came so close last year.

Out of curiosity how come Clement isn't in the team?

[Marine]

jo, gae, and now richard

quelle équipe de bras cassés, I can't believe it !

seb, fab, get ready, u're going to be called !

[soulage]

The first dinner will be fun with Gilles who didn't want to play on clay and feels not happy with Forget after DC final, Jeremy who said that Forget was stupid to follow only five guys last year and not happy to not have been guest for the final.

We're lucky Austria is a one player team otherwise we could more worried . With their poor second player and not the best second doubles player we are still fav but the guys need to be serious during the training.

Well we have a little suspens about who will be the second french single player. I think Llodra is an option as much as Jeremy and Bennet especially because his ranking will let him play the second autrian player the first day. If we consider that Gilles is the player who has more his chances vs Melzer it can be an option.

[Blackbriar]

an upset is coming i tell you. Gasquet couldn't handle physically the next 5-seters on clay. I think he would have played if he had lost in 2 nd and QF, but it's really traitorous from Ritchie to say that now, because Forget has no back-up solutions and will hope a miracle to win the tie.

[Puschkin]

Originally Posted by Blackbriar

an upset is coming i tell you. Gasquet couldn't handle physically the next 5-seters on clay. I think he would have played if he had lost in 2 nd and QF, but it's really traitorous from Ritchie to say that now, because Forget has no back-up solutions and will hope a miracle to win the tie.

You are so ridiculous and close to getting on my ignore list. I really wonder why the French team would need a miracle to win two matches against nr 127 or 174 and a Melzer who has to play three matches in three days and win them all?

In fact, nothing has changed, a part from the fact that Gael and maybe Richard would even have been able to beat Melzer as well.

[Marine]

Originally Posted by Puschkin

You are so ridiculous and close to getting on my ignore list. I really wonder why the French team would need a miracle to win two matches against nr 127 or 174 and a Melzer who has to play three matches in three days and win them all?

It's just that blackbriar would be very happy of a loss...

[Lesliem]

Originally Posted by Marine

jo, gae, and now richard

quelle équipe de bras cassés, I can't believe it !

seb, fab, get ready, u're going to be called !

+ 1

Ils sont tous en sucre c'est incroyable . Richard is always very motivated as a substitute but when he is called as a titular he withdraws....

Last year we were in final thanks to Mika, Monfils, Bennet & Arnaud (Jo 1st round ok)...Only one of our super musketeers

Gilles, Mika, Jérémy on clay...poor Forget. I hope the guys will keep their nerves and that Melzer won't be able to win his 3 matches.

[Blackbriar]

Originally Posted by Marine

It's just that blackbriar would be very happy of a loss...

a loss would mean playing the play-offs just after Wimbledon, and Gasquet selected again because it is not prestigious enough for Monfils and Tsonga.
To me the best thing is France winning this tie, and then Forget select Tsonga and Monfils as single players and anyone BUT Gasquet as alternate for next round so Ritchie can work and play for himself and not unforgiving french journalists and FFt officials.

[ImmzB]

I'm sure Richard wants to play and not be the 5th player!

If Monfils & Tsonga are fit, Forget will pick them 2 as the singles players and Llodra and Benny for the Doubles which means Richard will be the 5th/6th player!

This was the best time for Richard to play DC tennis but his injury got the better of him.

If France play Germany in the QF, they chould choose Clay and if they face Croatia I'm sure they will choose Hard. So Richard has a better chance to play against the team who will choose Clay as Forget will pick Monfils & Tsonga for the ties which are held on Hard and Gasquet couuld/should be picked over Tsonga for the ties which are being held on Clay.

[Cloudygirl]

I don't understand why it's ok for Monfils and Tsonga to be injured but when Richard is he's clearly shirking his duty somehow. Tsonga wouldn't play when injured because he focuses on slams and quite rightly so.

[Tulipe]

Originally Posted by Marine

jo, gae, and now richard

quelle équipe de bras cassés, I can't believe it !

seb, fab, get ready, u're going to be called !

Exactly what I said today Despite how much I love Chardy, I think if Seb played instead of him, it wouldn't make a big difference. But let's see, he may as well surprise us...

[Puschkin]

Originally Posted by ImmzB

If Monfils & Tsonga are fit, Forget will pick them 2 as the singles players and Llodra and Benny for the Doubles which means Richard will be the 5th/6th player!

You think as wrongly as Forget, always taking Tsonga, Gael and Llodra for granted. In my view one should not select a DC-team based on ranking alone, but look who is in form, who is good on the surface and also at match-ups e.g. Troicki-Simon.

Besides: Even if one goes with the rankings, who says that in July it will be the same as now. Richard is not that far away from Tsonga right now.

If one reads French sites, one has the feeling that catastrophe is looming in Vienna. I keep saying that France's only real set-back for this tie was the withdrawal of Gael. This is exactly the proof of the benefits the DEPTH in French tennis. Which other nation except Spain would be able to come up with a team, where the worst player is still Top 80 after nr. 1, 2 and 3 retired. Imagine Serbia without Djokovic, Tipsarevic and Troicki? Having said that, it seems as if I contradict myself about the importance of ranking. Well, nr 17 or 25 is irrelevant, but the Austrian number 2 is 127 or 174, and that does make a difference.

[turtle-rn]

Gilles lashes out.

la-mise-au-point-de-simon

Don't have time for a translation, the gist of his interview (full version in L'Equipe):

- a team can't work when each and everyone do as they please, arrive when they feel like it.
- being a member of the DC team has become a burden.
- Forget doesn't understand Gilles' game, he [Forget] doesn't have to speak of his game when he's sitting on a chair while Gilles is doing the hard work.
- During the previous DC matches, Gilles listened carefully to Forget's advices but it was actually a trouble to him more than anything else.

Love is in the air.

(or maybe it's a concerted effort to disturb the Austrian team? )

[Puschkin]

Originally Posted by turtle-rn

Gilles lashes out.

He will have made many new friends with this, particularly among his team-mates.