ITF

14 ITFWorld // AUTUMN 2019 Roger Federer has played just one tie. Tracing further back, Spain won the last of its five titles in 2011 but Rafael Nadal has only managed to contest four ties since that victory in Seville. And Novak Djokovic, despite being the youngest of the Big Three, has been unavailable for one reason or another for more than half of Serbia's last 10 ties. During his pomp, Laver was a performer whose accomplishments eclipsed those of Federer, Nadal and Djokovic. It is, of course, a hypothetical argument but had he played in an Open era, rather than turning his back on the Grand Slam events in the early 1960s to lay the foundations of his fortune as a professional, the Australian's tally of majors would at least be closer to 20 than his actual collection of 11. Naturally, it is his two complete Grand Slams, in 1962 and again in 1969, that give him the highest level of self-satisfaction, but the Davis Cup titles to which he contributed in 1959, 1960, '61, '62 and '73 are a source of huge pride. Apart from anything else they remain a great connection to Laver's homeland even though he has lived in the United States for more than half a century. "All the finals stand out for me although I didn't actually play on court in 1958 and just served as the team junior," he recalled. "There was a great feeling attached to playing the final against the United States in Forest Hills a year later because I had played the five ties that got the team there. "Even though I lost both my singles rubbers against Barry McKay and Alex Olmedo, the team triumphed 3-2. Thereafter two of those wins came against Italy, in Sydney and then Melbourne, when as defending champions we only had to play the Challenge Round as the final. The Italian matches featured a couple of great tussles with Nicola Pietrangeli and then I played my last tie against Mexico in Brisbane. "But despite winning the Davis Cup all those years in succession, I don't think the Australian team felt invincible. A lot of emphasis was put on the need to retain the title because it meant a great deal and the bond between all the players was always so strong." One of the great joys of playing Davis Cup, not just for Laver but so many of his Australian peers, was the camaraderie and team spirit. Names like Lew Hoad, Ken Rosewall, Roy Emerson, Fred Stolle, Neale Fraser, John Newcombe, Tony Roche and several more just seem to jump out of the pages of tennis history books. Harry Hopman, the captain and coach who forged an Australian tennis dynasty, took control in 1938, before Laver was born and progressed to lead 22 winning teams before finally handing over to Fraser. Some players reportedly nicknamed Hopman 'Captain Bligh' for his authoritative, militaristic discipline. Others dubbed him 'The Wizard' for his championship mastery and ability to foster team spirit. Laver certainly fell into the second category and "Let's be honest, as much as some people were loath to admit, the whole Davis Cup was not exactly healthy in its old format." R O D L A V E R Laver retained his Wimbledon title in 1969 R O D L AV E R I N T E R V I E W

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