[Aphex]

Robin Söderling declined to play in the DC tie India-Sweden this weekend, citing a knee injury as the cause. Andreas Vinciguerra on the comeback trail from injury had to withdraw from a couple of clay-court tournies to be reserve player.

Now, suddenly Söderling is well enough to participate in the Thailand Open. So his knee couldn't cope with the grass in India but he can play on hardcourt$ in Bangkok.

Don't you just love this guy?

Needless to say his teammates, especially Andreas Vinciguerra, who needed to play as much as possible on clay before that season is over, are also very happy about the situation.

 

[Action Jackson]

Faen, I love you Toad that is great work for sure and yes Vinci had to pull out of the challenger in Poland and trying to qualify for Palermo.

Vinci also got sick as well in India, not bad for a reserve player, who is trying to build his career again, while Söderling is on the beach somewhere.

 

[jole]

Nothing new, but I agree it needs to be highlighted.

 

[LaTenista]

Soderling isn't the only player who missed DC. I've heard all about the Volandri money dispute. What about Radek Stepanek, who's due to play Ho Chi Minh this week? That's got to be leaving a bad taste in someone's mouth seeing as Germany has just become the first nation to ever kick the Czech Republic out of the world group.

Jiri Novak had a legit injury and he isn't playing a tournament this week.

Tim Henman and Carlos Moya both went on the record saying they wouldn't play DC at all this year and look at the sort of year they've both been having . Is there a DC curse?

 

[Scotso]

There are a lot of top players in the sport who refuse to play DC... it's their decision, no?

I don't see anyone attacking Agassi for it.

 

[revolution]

I agree with LaTenista, and when Novak was declared unfit, then Stepanek shouldn't have been so selfish as not to play. He has cost his country their world group place, and they shouldn't let him in again if he comes crawling back. Note all the Murray haters crying for poor little vilified Stepanek? Well this proves exactly what an asshole he is.

Henman would not have made the difference against the Swiss the way he was playing, plus they had a fully fit squad, and Spain can call on a few class acts.

 

[howardean]

There are a lot of top players in the sport who refuse to play DC... it's their decision, no?

I don't see anyone attacking Agassi for it.

i agree, i don't see why people seem to place DC on some higher level that makes it some criminal offense not to play it. while i respect the players who give up their time to play for their country with no ranking points or money
to gain, i don't think it should be separated from the other tournaments in terms of obligation to play it. plus, you liked my thread

 

[Aphex]

:haha:
This is the good stuff. A stir up shit journo, two team mates in conflict and they even bring in the top suit at the end.

From Svenska Dagbladet:

Rift in the Swedish DC team

Open conflict between Robin Söderling and the other Swedish players

Sweden's Davis Cup team is shook by internal struggles. Cause: Robin Söderling declined to play in the India tie due to a knee injury but will participate in the Bangkok ATP tournament which starts today.
-I didn't want to risk retiring from a DC match, says Robin to SvD.
-He probably knows he's done wrong, says Andreas Vinciguerra.

Robin Söderling has also before had trouble gelling with the DC gang and the other day he got to know the rift was even deeper.
-I received an sms from the guys in the team which said: "Good luck in Bangkok".( :lol: )
How did you react?
-Bah, it's so ridiculous and unneccessary, this doesn't make it more fun to play DC. It would've been better if they'd called me to check out the facts first.
What are the facts?
-I have a knee injury which will be operated on after the last tournament of the year. The doctors have said it won't be aggravated by playing.
But why withdraw from a DC match to play an ATP tournament now?
-Because I only play for myself on the tour, if I feel pain I can retire and it will only affect myself. If I was playing DC and had to retire the whole team would suffer, says the 21 year old Västgöte, who is not surprised by the other guys reaction.
-I could almost forsee they would think I'm egoistical, I just let them do it, I couldn't care less.

Although Andreas Vinciguerra and the other players of the DC team don't call-at least not in public- Robin a traitor, they are critical of his actions and hesitant towards his explanation:
-If I had said no to DC i would never play the week after. The question is how Robin's knee suddenly could be so well he can play both singles and doubles in Bangkok. But I hope the injury is the real reason behind his not playing, says "Vinci".
What do you mean?
-Well, unless there's another reason($$$$$$$), which would be disrespectful towards the team and the country, says "Vinci" who is affected the most by Robin's withdrawal.

The 24 year old skåning misses two claycourt tournaments, and the week in New Delhi is a big bump on his comeback trail after a couple of years in injury hell.
-Me, I don't hesitate to come if the team needs me, says "Vinci", who knew he'd be a reserve player.
Söderling says he also doesn't hesitate to play DC but will have to live with the doubts.
-The behaviour as such doesn't send a positive signal, says, the head of Swedens Tennis Association, Tony Wiréhn, although he doesn't want to pass to harsh a judgment.
-I want to talk to Robin in person before I say any more, but if it's the case he doesn't feel the same joy as the others representing his country, we'll have to do something about it.

If spontaneous Robin Söderling only looked after his own rapport with the DC team he would in the current situation be served by being more calculating and withdraw from the Bangkok tournament- "the knee wasn't up for it".
Jonas Arnesen

Now they need to rig the draw for R32 of the Stockholm Open so we can have a :boxing: Toad vs. Vince
(Sorry about the sloppy translation. No time. No dictionary)

 

[Plastic Bertrand]

It would not have taken much time for Soderling to say hey I am not interested in playing Davis Cup beforehand instead of faking of a knee injury to get out of it and play in a tournament, at least Stepanek was good enough to say at the start of the season I am not playing Davis Cup, whether or not people agree with the choice made.

 

[Kristen]

I don't dislike Robin, and I can see where he's coming from, with his comments. I can also understand why the Swedish team would be a bit "WTF?" because I thought the same, when I saw the list for Bangkok. However, if he thinks he might be able to play, and the pressure will only be from himself, then good on him.

If he had been part of the DC team, what then? What if it turns out his knee does give him a bit of grief and he has to pull out? (Waiting for the 'ifs and buts are irrelevant' comment)Then people would find another reason to diss him because he's such a bastard with no personality or professionalism. I like that he's a bit different to the rest of the guys. He's weird, he's quiet and abrupt and probably a bit abrasive towards some people. I don't care. He's Swedish, is competent at times, and has always been polite when I've spoken with him.

I understand that Vinci's ranking is pretty ugly right now, but I'm so glad he's been chosen for the team. He's an amazing player and I'd like to think that even though he's suffered from dehydration (crazy boy!) and is out of tournaments, he will gain confidence and get back into the swing of things from his participation in DC.

 

[Deivid23]

It´s nothing new, a lot of players do similar things, not a think I like, of course (and the Captains also, if not just ask Robredo)

 

[Aphex]

There are a lot of top players in the sport who refuse to play DC... it's their decision, no?

I don't see anyone attacking Agassi for it.

In this case, I disagree. Söderling(and Pim-pim) was on the only traveling team around (Team Catella) when he was younger sponsored by among others Tennis Sweden. They've invested a lot of money into his career. So he owes them at least a couple of years of DC service IMO. He's not a self-made man like Björkman or Ryderstedt.

Agassi played DC for more than a decade and brought home the cup several times. That's a different story, isn't it?

 

[*Ljubica*]

There are a lot of top players in the sport who refuse to play DC... it's their decision, no?

I don't see anyone attacking Agassi for it.

I agree. If people want to play for their country - then good for them - but if they don't that is their personal choice and they should not be villified for it in my opinion. Tennis players have relatively short careers and must do what is best for them - their health, their finances and supporting their families - DC is not an obligation and Soderling, Stepanek etc should not be treated as some kind of traitor or pariah for saying "no".

 

[nobama]

Roger hasn't committed to playing next year. He told the fans what they wanted to hear on Saturday but then qualified his statement by saying he'd make a decision in the next few weeks. I think as a player you should be in or out - either you commit to play or you don't. I don't like this 'I'll play when it fits my schedule' or 'I'll play when the team is in a bind and needs me to save them'. There's no way Switzerland will win DC without Roger (and maybe not with him either), so if he wants at least a shot the cup he's gonna have to play.

 

[Horatio Caine]

Maybe I've got the wrong end of the stick, but if Stepanek said at the start of the year that he wasn't going to play DC this year, then fair play to him for not playing this week. It is not his fault that Czech Republic lost. 9 months is plenty of time for the other team players to reach some sort of form good enough to win any tie.

If I am right, Soderling gave notice a few days before the tie? Deciding to play the day after the tie is selfish, but as Rosie said players have short careers and it is up to them how much they jeopardise their bodies. Equally, if he had committed to the tie, what part would he have played? He is not in form, and hasn't played much. Bjorkman and Johansson are excellent grasscourt players and are head-and-shoulders above the Indian singles duo on that surface. They didn't need him for the tie...

 

[Horatio Caine]

Roger hasn't committed to playing next year. He told the fans what they wanted to hear on Saturday but then qualified his statement by saying he'd make a decision in the next few weeks. I think as a player you should be in or out - either you commit to play or you don't. I don't like this 'I'll play when it fits my schedule' or 'I'll play when the team is in a bind and needs me to save them'. There's no way Switzerland will win DC without Roger (and maybe not with him either), so if he wants at least a shot the cup he's gonna have to play.

I have to agree with some points here. Roger should commit or stay out. Obviously, if he plays then the Swiss have an 80% chance of winning against ANY nation, but it is a little stupid just to play to keep them in the WG. Davis Cup obviously isn't a priority for him at the moment...my guess is he will focus on it if he wins the French within the next 2 years. Then his only remaining goals apart from winning more slams would be an Olympic gold medal and the Davis Cup.

Equally, his decisions are good. He is giving the rest of the Swiss team a chance to win a WG match without him. That would give the team members vital experience and confidence...there needs to be a future beyond Federer.

 

[Scotso]

I think we also need to qualify all of this by looking at the circumstances. This wasn't the DC semifinal. Sweden was in absolutely no danger of losing to India, even without Soderling... so I really don't understand why people are so upset.

 

[Action Jackson]

I think we also need to qualify all of this by looking at the circumstances. This wasn't the DC semifinal. Sweden was in absolutely no danger of losing to India, even without Soderling... so I really don't understand why people are so upset.

You don't see the problem with this then? It's easy the Toad only needed to say to the team I don't want to play DC, just like Stepanek did at the start of the season with the Czechs. No need to use a bullshit excuse for an injury. it's not like the regular tour where he would get fined.

 

[JMG]

What about Moodie? He's playing in Vietnam, but didn't play in DC so that S.Africa went down to Group II. Was he injured?

 

[Scotso]

You don't see the problem with this then? It's easy the Toad only needed to say to the team I don't want to play DC, just like Stepanek did at the start of the season with the Czechs. No need to use a bullshit excuse for an injury. it's not like the regular tour where he would get fined.

Exactly, there's no need for an excuse so maybe it wasn't one?