The Tribune

By BRENT STUBBS

Senior Sports Reporter

bstubbs@tribunemedia.net

Due to their commitments to school, top seed Baker Newman and No.4 seed Kevin ‘KJ’ Major won’t be able to represent the Bahamas when the first round of the American Zone II Davis Cup tie is played against Venezuela next month.

In their absence, Bahamas Lawn Tennis Association secretary Darnette Weir has confirmed that Philip Major Jr has been added to the team to replace Newman and they are hoping to finalise the replacement for Major before the end of the week.

The tie was originally set for February 3-5 in Venezuela. But due to the civil unrest in the country, they opted to play the tie at the Doral Country Club in Miami, Florida.

Weir said while Major Jr will now join Spencer Newman and player/captain Marvin Rolle, the BLTA is looking at filling the final spot with either Justin Lunn or Cereno Rolle, who may have to play against each other to determine who gets the spot.

“We don’t have our number one player, but it more than likely will change the dynamics, but with Marvin Rolle being the coach, we will rise to the occasion.

“If we fall short, we still have a chance in April to play the other country to try to remain in zone II. We have fought too hard to be in zone II to get relegated back to zone III, so we hope that Marivin’s leadership and everybody being on one accord, we will be able to pull off the win over Venezuela.”

Should the Bahamas lose against Venezuela, they will have to play the loser of the tie between Bolivia and El Salvador the same weekend in El Salvador from April 7-9 at a venue to be decided to avoid getting relegated to zone III next year.

A victory over Venezuela would enable the Bahamas to move on to play the winner of Bolivia vs El Salvador, also in April, with the view of either advancing to zone one or remaining in zone II for next year.

“We’re hoping that Baker will be able to join us in April,” Weir said.

Baker Newman, winner of the BLTA’s annual Giorgio Baldacci National Open in December, which served as the trials for the team, is currently enrolled at Vanderbilt where he’s a member of their men’s tennis team.

Kevin Major Jr, who finished in the No.4 spot, is enrolling in Seminole State Junior College in Oklahoma and will not be available.

Philip Major Jr, who ended up in fifth place behind Spencer Newman (second) and Marvin Rolle (third), said it’s an honour for him to be selected to the team to represent the country.

“I’m going to take this opportunity and give it my best and leave everything out there,” said Major, who will be making the Davis Cup team for the second time, the first coming in 2013.

With the Bahamas finally coming out of zone III last year when the team of the Newman brothers, Kevin Major and Rolle prevailed in Montevideo, Uruguay, Philip Major said he feels the Bahamas still has a solid team to go up against Venezuela, despite not having Baker Newman and Kevin Major Jr.

“We have a lot of talent here in the Bahamas and we’re all capable of playing great tennis worldwide, not just in the Bahamas” he said. “If we can all bring our A game, I believe we will have a chance, not just to win, but to move up to zone one.”

In preparation for the tie, 20-year-old Philip Major said he’s been doing four hours of gym work and at least two hours of tennis workouts daily for the anticipation of playing in one of the best-of-five matches during the tie.

“I want to be ready physically and mentally and to know that I will be able to last as long as I am able to,” he said. “With the tie being in Miami, hopefully we can have a good crowd come out to support us.”

Once the team is completed, Weir said they will announce any package that is available for spectators who would wish to travel to Miami to cheer on the team.