Jim Courier may not have
successfully defended his Legends title at the Ritz-Carlton tournament last
week, but the tennis ace still had the satisfaction of being named the United
States Davis Cup captain a few days before.
Courier has a lot to celebrate at
the moment. He is recently married, is in great shape having just turned 40 and
his love of tennis will continue as a player in the Legends series and
involvement in steering the Davis Cup team.
The Legends tournament was won in a
three set thriller by Sweden’s Stefan Edberg who beat Russia’s Marat Safin. Courier
got to the semis.
Courier signed a multi-year
agreement and succeeds Patrick McEnroe, who ended his 10-year tenure as US
Davis Cup Captain in September. He makes his debut as captain against Chile in
March. Courier, a four-time Grand Slam champion and former World No.1, was a
member of Davis Cup title-winning teams in 1992 and 1995.
“As a player, Davis Cup was very
important to me, and I certainly thought it would be something I would be
interested in if I were given the opportunity,” he said. “I think it’s a great
honour first and foremost. And I think it’s a great challenge. And I think it’s
going to be a lot of fun.”
He certainly has the playing
pedigree. The two-time French Open and Australian Open champ was a reliable and
clutch player for the USA during his 12-year professional career. He was a
member of two winning teams and was 5-1 in clinching matches.
Such was the Floridian’s winning presence
that US Davis Cup teams went 13-1 when he played, his sole loss coming in his
final tie against Australia in 1999.
Rituals and superstitions are an
integral part of sports people’s lives. Courier had his own too when playing at
top level. “I think all players have rituals, things that make them feel
comfortable so that you get ready to go play.
“I like to get a bit of quiet time
before I play and think about the things that I want to do on the court in
terms of shots and the strategy against the opponent I’ll be competing against
that day.
“Sometimes I’d listen to some
music. Depending on how I’m feeling, if I’m feeling really anxious with a lot
of energy I’ll listen to some more mellow music to calm myself down. Then if
I’m feeling a little tired or lethargic I’ll listen to some upbeat music to get
myself up, I’m really trying to feel as normal as possible but usually that’s
the last thing you feel before you go out to play. My main genres of music I
like are rock’n’roll. I’ve played a little bit of music but I wouldn’t put too
much stock in that.”
The most unusual place he’s played
tennis is at the foot of the Acropolis in Athens, Greece. “Pete Sampras and I
played a little street tennis exhibition at there and that was pretty neat.”
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