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Shanghai blog
Nalbandian's elevator tragedy; Rafa's elevator music
In a certain way he reminds of Jim Courier from his playing days - back then before he became a sometimes member of the media as well as an entrepreneur, Courier often was caustic with the media, although I must say we always enjoyed a good working relationship. As with Courier, Nalbandian is a bright guy who has a penchant for intensity and moodiness. But that doesn't mean that there's not a more sensitive side to the Argentinean that we all saw on Thursday night here. Nalbandian came close to tears on a number of occasions during his press conference and it wasn't because he was looking good for a semifinal berth that would give him a shot to defend his Tennis Masters Cup title. He got that berth but he had other sadder things on his mind. Occasionally putting his hand up to cover his eyes and wipe away tears, Nalbandian was in mourning over the tragic death of his nine-year-old godson, Lautoro, the son of his cousin, who died in an elevator accident. At one point, Nalbandian had considered abandoning the match to go home, but travel arrangements would not get him there in time to attend the funeral. Instead, he remained in Shanghai and played inspired tennis - from the first ball hit it was easy to tell that Nalbandian was a man on a mission - if he couldn't go home to mourn with his family, he was going to have a good reason to be so far away. The Chinese fans, who seem to love every player here whether they play singles or doubles, have taken to their 2005 champion. Aware of the tragedy in his life, three local ladies came with Argentine flags and a sign, "David, Fight for Little Lautoro." Appreciative of the sentiments, Nalbandian found the sign was a disruption to his concentration so he sent officials to ask the ladies to put it down. After his win, however, he acknowledged their sympathies by tossing them his wristbands. In just a couple of weeks the Argentines will be heading to Moscow for the Davis Cup final. Don't count the Argentines out. Nalbandian is a guy who plays for the love of his country, has an outstanding Davis Cup record, and who will be driven by this tragedy to bring back the Cup to Argentina. The Argentines might not win, but I'd be surprised if Nalbandian doesn't leave blood on the court before surrendering. The prevailing opinion seems to be that the best player to back up Nalbandian in the Davis Cup efforts would be Guillermo Cañas, who just came back from a doping ssuspension. Even Belraussian Max Mirnyi, who will support the Russians because of coming from that side of the planet, said he thinks that Cañas would be the ideal choice and someone the other guys haven't faced in a while, not to mention a not-so-bad hard-court player. Andy Roddick, who is feeling as if his game is getting back on track with each ball hit, confirmed that Jimmy Connors will be continuing on as a close advisor in 2007. While Jimmy won't be "on the road five weeks in a row," he will be "involved next year." © TennisReporters.net 2006
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