Monaco to meet Nadal in opener

Argentina have decided to hold back David Nalbandian, opting instead to send Juan Monaco up against Rafael Nadal in the opening singles match of the Davis Cup final.

Nadal will take on Monaco today in the opening match of the best-of-five series on clay at the Olympic Stadium, with Nalbandian picked to play in tomorrow’s doubles. The 2002 Wimbledon finalist could then play in Sunday’s reverse singles if Argentina are still alive.

Nadal has won 18 consecutive singles in the competition for four-times champions Spain since losing in his debut in 2004.

“It’s one of the greatest [challenges] in [tennis] history,” Monaco said yesterday at the Lope de Vega theatre, the site of the draw for the final. “It’s a tough match not only to play the first game for Argentina but also against my good friend Rafa. It’s a new challenge, but it definitely motivates me to be playing in my first Davis Cup final.”

Monaco has five wins and seven losses in the cup, while Nalbandian’s singles record is 22-5 and 10-1 on clay. Overall, Nalbandian has 33 wins and ten losses. In the second singles, Spain’s World No 5 David Ferrer will play Juan Martin del Potro. Nadal and Ferrer’s combined Davis Cup record on clay is 25 wins and no defeats.

In the doubles, Nalbandian will partner Eduardo Schwank against Feliciano Lopez and Fernando Verdasco.

“No match is won beforehand. Somebody has to play first and I’m going to be the first to try to win that first point for Spain,” said Nadal, a six-times French Open champion who is scheduled to play Del Potro in Sunday’s reverse singles. “Even if I’m tired I tried my best to arrive in the best conditions. Every point will be a difficult one.”

If Argentina can get at least one point today or tomorrow, it is possible that Nalbandian would replace Monaco for Sunday’s reverse singles match against Ferrer.

Although Nadal has been nearly perfect in Davis Cup matches this season, the Spaniard surrendered his world No 1 ranking to Novak Djokovic at Wimbledon and is coming off a disappointing ATP World Tour Finals in London. He was eliminated in the first round and said he felt less passionate for the game.

Even without Nadal, Spain beat favourites Argentina in the 2008 final in Mar del Plata. This year, it’s the Spanish team who are trying to stop themselves being over-confident on the final weekend of the season.

“They gave us up for beaten before the final and we won,” said Verdasco, who earned the cup-winning point in Mar del Plata.

“Both teams have a chance in the final. You still have to win it.”

Spain will be playing in their sixth final since their first Davis Cup title in 2000. They also won the tournament in 2004, 2008 and 2009.

Nalbandian, who hasn’t played since mid-October, will be playing in his third final for Argentina. “Everything is different this time,” Nalbandian said. Meanwhile, Argentina captain Tito Vazquez is upset that his team’s rest day was disturbed by early morning doping tests ahead of the final.

Argentina’s players were awakened from 6.30am local time to provide samples yesterday. Vazquez said: “It could have been done at another moment, but unfortunately that’s not up to us to decide.”