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From: pss@nvuxb.UUCP (P.Schroeder)
Newsgroups: net.sport
Subject: Davis Cup
Message-ID: <199@nvuxb.UUCP>
Date: Thu, 14-Nov-85 17:30:44 EST
Article-I.D.: nvuxb.199
Posted: Thu Nov 14 17:30:44 1985
Date-Received: Sat, 16-Nov-85 01:19:11 EST
Organization: Bell Communications Research, Red Bank, NJ
Lines: 38

>Allan McKillop

>now that i brought up the subject of ashe and the Davis Cup, i think this
>would be a good new topic.  what do people think about (1) the code thing,
>(2) the way the whole incident was handled and (3) the recent selections
>for the US Davis Cup team.  I think Georgia-Pacific (or whatever the
>name of the company is) should be dumped.  the Davis Cupis bigger
>than any one company.  I think ashe blew it by not taking a firm stand
>one way or the other.  he voiced support for mcenroe and connors, but
>ended up going for the code.  and why did we use Aaron Krickstein and
>Eliot Telscher for singles?  both Curren and Kriek were FAR about these
>two on the ATP computer.

I feel that the code was a mistake and that the USTA was bullied by
Georgia-Pacific in this matter.  However, there is no mistaking the fact
that McEnroe and Connors often behave badly both on-court and off
(i.e., interviews, etc.).  Georgia-Pacific and the USTA claimed that
the team represents the U.S. and should conform to the code.  Well,
in reality, the Davis Cup team is a group of paid professionals, not
an Olympic-type team.  What this boils down to is the same old question
of how do you discipline players for bad behaviour?  I think that the
present penalty system IF INVOKED can be effective.  However, even
in Davis Cup ties, where no tournament promotor is involved, bad
behaviour has been tolerated.  A player will tend to behave during Davis
Cup the same way as during the rest of the tournament schedule.  If the
penalty system is enforced properly and consistently, players like McEnroe
and Connors will have to clean up their act.  In addition, the fine system
should be tougher which would apply longer and/or more frequent suspensions
for fine accumulations.

With regard to the choices of Krickstein and Teltscher over Curren and Kriek,
the court surface was a major consideration in the tie with West Germany.
That tie was played on slow red European clay, a surface on which neither Curren
nor Kriek play well.  With the decline of Arias and the unavailability of
McEnroe and Connors, Krickstein and Teltscher were probably the best choices.
By the way, Teltscher's behaviour during the West German tie was nothing to
be proud of either.