BICKNELL… the intention is to get us off to a great begin (Picture: Joseph Wellington)
The Eric Bell Tennis Centre in Kingston can be buzzing with pleasure on Saturday as Jamaica’s Davis Cup staff takes on New Zealand of their Davis Cup Group Two play-off tie.
Within the opening match, beginning at 11:00 this morning, Jamaica’s primary participant Blaise Bicknell is ready to face-off towards his New Zealand counterpart Jack Loutit.
Within the second match of the day, Rowland “Randy” Phillips is scheduled to problem Kiranpai Pannu from New Zealand at 2:00 pm.
The opposite members of the Jamaica staff are John Chin, Nicholas Gore, and Daniel Azar.
Bicknell, who mentioned he has absolutely recovered from hip surgical procedure that sidelined him for over six months, is raring to compete.
“I’m excited to go on the market, and hopefully, I can kick us off robust with the primary win,” he mentioned. “This man is an effective participant, however I’m assured in my skills and what I can do as a result of the intention is to get us off to a great begin,” Bicknell added.
He indicated that his preparations main as much as the championship have gone nicely, as he has been hitting the ball cleanly in apply.
“My physique is feeling good as a result of I’ve been placing in a whole lot of work with the staff, and I’m feeling 100 per cent able to go. They’ve additionally been practising rather well this week, and we’ve got been working laborious so we’re all feeling good going into this tie,” Bicknell acknowledged.
Phillips, a veteran participant on the staff, can also be expressing confidence forward of the beginning of the event.
“I’m feeling actually good,” he mentioned. “Now we have been coaching very laborious, and we’ve got been placing within the work on and off the court docket, so I’m actually wanting ahead to it. The Davis Cup is considered one of my favorite instances to play, so I’m actually loving this chance to characterize my nation.”
New Zealand Captain Artem Sitak mentioned his gamers are prepared for motion.
“We’re feeling good as a result of we love the Davis Cup. Clearly, tennis is a really egocentric sport, however our staff setting is superior, and [Jamaica] is wanting good, so it’ll be some thrilling matches,” he mentioned.
“We’re very ready as a result of we got here right here 9 days in the past, understanding that the circumstances can be fairly powerful with the warmth and humidity. Fortunately we have been in a position to arrive early and prepare for this tie.”
President of Tennis Jamaica John Azar famous that each one is in place for a profitable championship and he’s optimistic that the Jamaicans will do nicely.
“Now we have put a whole lot of preparation into the venue, and I’m very assured that all the pieces goes to go easily over the 2 days. Taking a look at our staff, I really feel nice in regards to the boys as a result of they appeared sharp on the court docket, have been working laborious, and have good chemistry,” he mentioned.
“The preparations have been wonderful. We had three coaching camps, and the ITF Futures event gave a whole lot of our gamers publicity towards top-level competitors. Then we had the All Jamaica Championship in December, so the fellows are good to go,” Azar mentioned.
