‘CNMI netter in Davis Cup team possible’

The possibility of having a player from the CNMI compete as a member of the Pacific Oceania Davis Cup team is good, according to the team’s captain.

Pacific Oceania captain Jeff Race, who heads the development of youth netters in the Commonwealth, said yesterday that he is hopeful several players from the Commonwealth would one day make it to the team.

“I do see us having a player on the Davis Cup team in the future,” Race said during an interview. “I think that right now I would have to pick Tim Quan. He has really improved his tennis in the last few years. He really opened a lot of eyes in the South Pacific Mini Games when he played one of the guys on my Davis Cup team and took him to three tough sets, so I think people looked at that and said ‘Hey, wow this guy is really moving up.’”

Race added that Quan, a 6’2” student at Santa Clara University, as well as other players such as Ji Hoon Heo and Ralph Buenaventura, have been playing great and stressed that the possibility of a CNMI representative in the Davis Cup team can become a reality.

“Tim’s got a big game with a lot of weapons… he can really hit the heck out of the ball, so I think having somebody on the Davis Cup team is not a fantasy at all. I think somebody like Tim and other guys coming up can do it. We got a great program and I’m so happy and proud of the kids that play tennis here.”

Race cited that youth netters in the local tennis program are already competitive against adult players and are trying out for the Micronesian Games team.

“The kids that are on the top level of my program are trying out for the Micro Games team,” he said. “They’re really motivated right now. Everything in life, especially in sports is goal driven. If you know where you want to go then you can figure out a way to get there. Ji Hoon is the No. 2 player in Pacific 14-and-under and he’s had a lot of success and won his first men’s open a month or two ago. I’m impressed with the progress and even Ralph is playing great.”

Race leaves today for Hong Kong for the 2006 Davis Cup Asia Oceania Group 2 tie.

Race will captain the same team that competed against South Korea last year as Michael Leong of Solomon Islands, Juan Langton of Samoa, Brett Baudinett of the Cook Islands, and West Nott of the Marshall Islands battle Hong Kong’s best from Feb. 10-12 at the Victoria Park Tennis Centre.

“It’s a tough zone,” Race said of Group II. “All the teams at this level have players that have ATP rankings except ours, but that didn’t stop us last year and I think we have a good chance this year,” Race said.

Pacific Oceania surprised many by beating Lebanon, 3-2, last year before succumbing to a fired-up South Korea team playing on home soil.

Race will serve as captain of the team for the fifth year, with his appointment running until next year. Prior to heading the Davis Cup team, Race skippered the Pacific Oceania Fed Cup team. The Fed Cup is the women’s version of the Davis Cup.