the scoop: THURSDAY, OCTOBER 14

McEnroe did offer Agassi spot on Davis Cup team
Rest of team would have supported Andre coming aboard

By Matthew Cronin, TennisReporters.net

Ron Cioffi/ TR.net

PMac: Team chemistry would have survived Andre's addition.

US captain Patrick McEnroe did call and offer Andre Agassi a spot on the Davis Cup team that will travel Spain, Dec. 3-5, for the final on clay, but the US' most formidable clay courter couldn’t be convinced to play.

"Of course I offered him a spot," McEnroe told TennisReporters.net. "I've offered him a spot every time we’ve played. He’s Andre Agassi. Did I get down on my knees and beg him to play? No. But did I ask him and do I think we’d have a better chance to win with him on the team? Yes. But that doesn’t mean that I still don’t think we have a good chance to win, because I do … I respect Andre’s decision to stick with his reasons for not playing. He’s certainly given enough to Davis Cup in the past."

TR.net was mistaken in reporting on Wednesday in that McEnroe didn’t place a call to Agassi after the US beat Belarus in the semifinals.

McEnroe said that he talked to Agassi at the US Open about the possibility of playing and then called him a couple of weeks later. But even though '99 Roland Garros champion Agassi was positive about the team and what McEnroe has done to get them to the final, he reiterated his the decision that he made in 2000 to move on with his life and career and free himself of the time commitment it takes to play Davis Cup.

"Andre is not the kind of guy who’s going to play when it’s convenient," McEnroe said. "If he were going to play Davis Cup again, it would have been for the whole year. He’s stubborn after he makes decisions, but that’s one of the reasons why he’s successful. He sticks with the plans that he believes in."

Eight-time Grand Slam champion Agassi said earlier this week that he changed his priorities in 2000 and wasn’t about to change them again. "It’s not going to be based on circumstances as to why all of a sudden I do play," Agassi said. "I didn’t play because we didn’t have a team that could win it. So I’m certainly not going to make a decision to play based on the fact that we have an opportunity to win it. These guys have worked hard to put themselves in that position. They deserve it. I wish them all the luck. I’ve been there. I’ve done it. I did it for 12 years, and I’ve chosen to give myself the freedom from playing so that I can give back as much as possible for as long as possible to this sport that’s been so good to me. I will continue to do that. But, at 34 years old, with two children, a business, the foundation, traveling 25, 30 weeks a year, I don’t have the same that I used to give."

DISCUSSION COVERED PRESENT TEAM
McEnroe said that the discussed the possibility of Agassi playing with his current team – Andy Roddick, Mardy Fish and the Bryan brothers. He said that all of them were supportive of the idea, even though had Agassi been named to the squad, Fish would have been left off the team. "I’ve been very supportive of Mardy and am always trying to push him to improve," McEnroe said. "But he hasn’t solidified himself as the automatic No. 2 player yet. With that said, if he gets himself in unbelievable shape, I do think he can win in Sevilla. He has the type of game that should be adaptable to clay."

Spain is expected to name former Roland Garros champs Juan Carlos Ferrero and Carlos Moya to play singles, and youngsters Tommy Robredo and Rafael Nadal to play doubles. Given that Roddick and Fish had little success on clay this year and the Bryans have been slumping, as of late, the US will be listed a serious underdogs. But McEnroe believes in his team’s chances. "Sure we’re underdogs, but that doesn’t mean we can’t win," he said. "This isn’t the clay court season or Roland Garros. This is one tie where every guy only has to win one match. If they do that, we’ll win."

McEnroe added the Mike Bryan appears too have fully recovered from his hip injury and won’t have to undergo surgery. The US captain also said he wouldn’t be surprised if Roddick pulled out of a couple of the upcoming European tournaments as he has made the Davis Cup final his priority and doesn’t want to overtax his body.