Paraguay wins tennis tie with build-up

Press, 27 February 1984, Page 21

Paraguay wins tennis tie with build-up

By

JOHN BROOKS

New Zealand’s international tennis representatives need intensive tournament tennis rather than concentrated practice immediately before contesting a Davis Cup tie.

That message came through strongly at Wilding Park on Saturday when the New Zealand combination of Russell Simpson and Chris Lewis lost a four-set doubles match to give Paraguay an unbeatable 3-0 lead in a first-round tie of the NEC-sponsored non-zonal competition. The two New Zealanders had spent the lead-up period to the tie practising in Sydney and Auckland, respectively, but the Paraguayans, Victor Pecci and Francisco Gonzalez, followed a different plan. They spent the time playing tournaments in Memphis and Philadelphia to spruce up their serve and volley game. The value of this line of preparation was there for all to see at Wilding Park. There were brief hopes of a New Zealand revival when Lewis and Simpson thwarted the Paraguayans’ prospects of winning the second set and levelled the scores at one set all. But from then on the lofty Latins played bold, and often brilliant, tennis as they demonstrated why they are ranked among the world’s best grooved pairs. Pecci, acknowledged by Gonzalez to be the calming influence in the combination, was emphatic that playing in tournaments was the proper way to approach a Davis Cup tie. “It is not good to play Davis Cup without tournaments beforehand,” he said. “There is a world of difference between practising and playing a tennis match.” Grudging acknowledgement of this approach came from the New Zealand captain, Jeff Simpson. “It is a bad time of the

year for us,” he said. “Chris and Russell had previously played indoors overseas, but this year they decided to stay down here and practise. “At this tie , Russell seemed two matches short, and Chris was probably underdone by about the same amount. “But this is the first time we have come up against such a strong line-up in a first-round tie. The Paraguayans had tournaments in the two weeks before they came here — maybe that’s the difference.” Simpson thought the New Zealand pair bounced back into contention in the second set, but seemed to have a concentration lapse in the third. “It was just like the singles,” he said. “We got back on level terms and then probably relaxed a little, and before we knew it the Paraguayans were on top again. In my mind, that’s match play.” Praise for the New Zealanders’ resolute stand in the second set came from Gonzalez, described by Jeff Simpson as the most brilliant of the two Paraguayans in shot production but the more fragile in temperament. “We served for the second set and had prospects of winning in three, but they kept coming back and hanging in there,” he said. “At one point we hit 10 shots at the net and they kept coming back really soft off the wood or metal or half wood and half string. It was hard to counter.” But that problem bothered the, Paraguayans only momentarily. Their strength of serve was matched by

their returns, and their quick reflexes enabled them to counter some of Lewis’s Wimbledon-style piledrivers. Pecci never faltered, and Gonzalez, if he pushed tentatively at some balls, made a big contribution with his athleticism and his ability to produce a line-splitting drive. However, Pecci was the mastermind behind the victory, a fact which Jeff Simpson readily admitted. “Pecci caught our boys many times with stuff they didn’t expect him to get back,” he said. “I thought his temperament was especially good, and he followed his serves into the net very well.” The New Zealand captain was not disenchanted, however, with his own doubles grouping. “When Chris and Russell get going they form a good combination. You will notice that when Chris returns well, Russell gets some easy volleys at the net.” Unfortunately for New Zealand, there were not too many moments for the 2700 spectators to cherish, especially after Pecci and Gonzalez began to stamp their dominance on the match in the third set. But Jeff Simpson defended his players’ display. “They desperately want to play well in front of their home crowd, but people probably don’t understand that,” he said. “In moments of frustration, Russell might throw his racket, but Chris probably bottles his feelings up a little.” Answering criticism of Lewis’s performance, Simpson said: “People might in-

terpret it differently but Chris tried very hard — perhaps too hard. He gave 100 per cent out there.” Alas for New Zealand, the Paraguayans were firing at around 110 per cent — a remarkable effort consider-

ing they were severely handicapped by lack of numbers in their doubles preparation at Wilding Park. Alberto Gross Brown, the Paraguayan captain, said this preparation was “top

secret,” but Gonzalez let the cat out of the bag. “The two of us practised cross-court, just as if we were half of a doubles pairing,” he said. “When you have only two players in a team you have to practise

within those boundaries.” The grim result (for New Zealand) was: Victor Pecci and Francisco Gonzalez (Paraguay) beat Chris Lewis and Russell Simpson (New Zealand), 6-3, 810, 6-2, 6-4.