Tennis: Almagro hopes to play at Davis Cup

NEW YORK: Nicolas Almagro figures that Rafael Nadal must be ‘climbing the walls’ after announcing that he will miss Spain’s Davis Cup semi-final tie against the US next week. Nagging knee problems have already kept Nadal, an 11-time grand slam champion, from playing in last month’s London Olympics and the US Open. “The most important thing is that he will have time to recuperate so he comes back the same player as he was,” said Almagro. Almagro hopes to replace Nadal in the Spanish squad against the Americans. He said he was waiting for a call from Spanish Davis Cup captain Alex Corretja before taking anything for certain. “It would be a great honour to play in the Davis Cup and play for my country,” said Almagro.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 5^th, 2012.