The Tribune

DESPITE not having a chance to work together because of the coronavirus pandemic, Bahamas Lawn Tennis Association (BLTA) president Perry Newton is confident that both the Davis Cup team for men and the Billie Jean King Cup for women will perform very well.

Newton’s comments came after the BLTA released the names of the two teams for the competitions, which were postponed in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. After the International Tennis Federation (ITF) confirmed the competition will take place this year, Newton said they went ahead to select the teams.

Veteran player/captain Marvin Rolle will once again head the men’s team for the Davis Cup.

The players selected are Justin Roberts, Kevin Major and Baker Newman.

They are scheduled to play from June 30 to July 3 in Panama City, Panama.

Two nations will advance from Americas Group III to contest the 2022 World Group II Play-offs.

The Bahamas will join the field that includes Antigua & Barbuda, Bermuda, Costa Rica, Cuba, Guatemala, Honduras, Jamaica, Panama, Puerto Rico, St Lucia, Trinidad & Tobago and the US Virgin Islands.

“I think it’s a very strong team with youth and experience,” Newton pointed out.

“We have persons who served prior on the team and were instrumental in getting us to the next level in the zone.

“With Justin Roberts, who is currently on tour, joining the team this year, I think our chances are very good.

“I think we have a very good chance of being promoted to zone II for 2022,” he added.

With Rolle based here at home with Major Jr, Newton said they will see if they can coordinate any team practice before the tie as Baker is currently based in the United States, while Roberts is on tour competing.

Kerrie Cartwright, also a veteran player, will serve as the captain for the Billie Jean King Cup team that will consist of Sydney Clarke, Larikah Russell and Simone Pratt. They will play out of Group II in the America’s event in Panama City, Panama from June 23-26.

They will play on clay courts against teams from Costa Rica, Ecuador, El Salvador, Panama and Uruguay in two pools, one with four teams and the other with three.

The winner of each pool will go to a playoff to determine which nation will advance to America’s Group One.

“The last time we competed in the Billie Jean Cup, we finished second in a very close match,” Newton said.

“We have two additions to the team that last played in Simone Pratt and Larikah Russell, both veterans and both very good players.

“So I think this team has the composition that can take us over the hump, so both the Billie Jean King and Davis Cup teams have the potential to get to the next level. We are very excited about their chances.”

According to Newton, COVID-19 has made it extremely tough to prepare the teams, but he noted that all of the other countries have the same setback, so it should be an even playing field when they travel to compete.

“We just have to go with the effort and the determination that we can get over the top,” Newton stressed.

The Billie Jean King Cup (formerly Fed Cup) was recently renamed in honour of American legend Billie Jean King, who won 39 Grand Slam titles - 12 in singles, 16 in women’s doubles and 11 in mixed doubles.

She is a formerNo. one player in the world and now a coach, who won the Fed Cup trophy a record 10 times as an individual.

She was appointed as the competition’s first global ambassador in 2019.