At the beginning of the year, all the country's strongest tennis players planned to play for the Russian national team. The main composition comes from the Top 10 - Sharapova, Kuznetsova, Petrov, Dementyev. And the “reserve” Chakvetadze and Safina, plying between 10th and 13th place in the ranking. Real dream team. Against her background, even the captain of the US national team in the Davis Cup, Patrick McEnroe, with his Blake, Roddick and brothers Brian, looked like a complete loser.
However, our dream-tim did not even live to the first baptism of fire. First, Dementyeva earned a honest fracture of the rib by honest work, then Sharapova, in addition to the hamstring stretch, received inflammation of the shoulder joint muscle.
The girls were sorry, but for the national team a small loss. Especially on the eve of the match with the Spaniards. The “reserve” Chakvetadze, for example, had personal meetings with the leader of the Spanish national team Anabel Medina Garrigues - 5: 0. Here, Anna Elena Dementieva was replaced.
With the replacement of Sharapova, a small hitch came out. At first, Tarpishchev wanted Dinara Safin, but Dinara and her mother, having not received an early invitation to the national team, had already made plans for the clay season. Tarpishchev “set aside” Vera Zvonarev because of some kind of viral infection. True, Vera herself said that she had no infection and no, but this is no longer important. The important thing is that Dinara and Vera spent their time free from the national team: both performed well in Charleston - the finals and semifinals, respectively.
As a result, the place of Sharapova in the team went to Elena Vesnina. Vesnina, who last year had a kind of breakthrough from the Top 100 to the Top 50, this year everything fell out of her hands - since January she has not won a single match. Therefore, most likely, in a match with the Spaniards Lena will not even go to court. Although, maybe he will play a couple with his beloved partner and girlfriend Chakvetadze. What is the point of taking risks with Vesnina if the team has three great and healthy tennis players besides her.
Putting dream-tim against Spanish women was like throwing beads, sorry, in front of pigs. Unless to please the gaze of the fans. The current composition does not inspire such colorful comparisons, but for the Spanish, as they say, it will be enough above the roof. The main goal of the national team, as before, is not a victory in the quarter-finals (as it were, of course), but an opportunity for the strongest to play for the country on the eve of the Olympics.
According to the regulations, four people with the best rating go to the Olympic Games from the country. It would seem that with Sharapova, Kuznetsova and Petrova alive, the struggle can go only for the remaining fourth place. There is a serious competition - 4 people per place. Plus Myskina, but this is a separate song. But the sport is unpredictable, and it is still unknown how the girls will show themselves for the time remaining before the Olympics. Anything can happen. For example, Nadezhda Petrova, for example, did not go to Charleston, dropped to 9th place in the rating and now she is separated from Safina by some 6 weightless points. And let's not forget about injuries that can greatly spoil the rating this year, but can be cut off during take-off just before the Olympics. In such circumstances, even Vera Zvonareva purely theoretically retains the chances of a trip to Beijing.
But to get to the Olympics, you need to play for the national team two more times in the current pre-Olympic cycle. Most Russians have no problems with this. Safina and Dementieva have already exceeded the norm. Myskina worked out her minimum last year. Petrova and Chakvetadze will pass the standard in a match with the Spaniards. Kuznetsova, who has not played for the national team since 2004, is determined to catch up this season. Only Masha Sharapova has a bold zero in this column.
Masha for a long time refused to play for the national team for various reasons, and it is not for us to blame her. But with her refusal to play with the Spaniards, Masha put herself in a completely unenviable position. It turns out that now she will have to play in both remaining matches - the semifinals and finals. Will it play? Far from a fact.
Sharapova initially agreed to play with the Spaniards only because she was satisfied with the schedule. And such a convenient schedule will no longer be. She will have to play the semi-finals immediately after Wimbledon, and Masha herself said that after Roland Garros and Wimbledon she lies for three weeks, as she is not even able to move. And the final will begin just after the US Open, where Mary will defend the title.
If you look at the situation even better, it will become even worse. There is no doubt that the American team with the participation of the Williams sisters in the quarterfinals will defeat Belgium, where there is neither Clijsters nor Henin. And this means that we will have to play the semifinals with the USA and in the USA. Not the best time and place for debut, but Masha, frankly, has little choice. Of course, it’s not a fact that the Williams sisters, and in particular Serena, will “survive” in the national team to the semifinals. What if they survive? Then we have no choice but to hope that for the remaining two months Sharapova will heal the injuries and have time to beat Serena Williams somewhere in order to raise his tone. Otherwise, it’s even scary to imagine how poor Masha’s strength will shake in this cup match, when the whole country looks at you and expects only victory from you.
But we can lose to the Americans, and this means that this year Sharapova will not have the opportunity to play for the national team for the second time. Be that as it may, Masha, one must think, will go to the Olympics anyway. Tarpishchev will probably come up with something. Can not come up with. But it will turn out ugly. Talks about Sharapova’s nationality will continue anyway: in the eyes of the public, one match for the country is not an indicator of patriotism, but just an attempt to jump on the train leaving for the Olympics. They will also begin to say that Sharapova was dishonest at the Olympics, beating other girls.
Now let's dream. It would be great if Masha put Serena Williams on both blades in the semifinals and then won the final as part of the national team. And then, even before the pile, she would have come to the Kremlin Cup and would have performed there, finally, humanly. Already, I want the official first racket of the country to finally become the real and main national hero. This place is vacant. It is waiting for her.
Ksenia VITRYAK