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McEnroe: Spirit key to Group World’s third straight Laver Cup title
American legend will captain for the ultimate time this weekend in Berlin
September 19, 2024
Maja Hitij/Getty Photos for Laver Cup
Group World’s John McEnroe and Frances Tiafoe share fun Thursday afternoon in preparation for the 2024 Laver Cup.
By Andy West
What position can persona and emotion play in forging success on the tennis courtroom? Maybe nobody is best positioned to touch upon this matter than John McEnroe.
The American tennis icon is relying on group spirit to put the inspiration for Group Worldβs 2024 Laver Cup marketing campaign this weekend in Berlin. Towards a Group Europe lineup that options 5 of the Prime 10 within the PIF ATP Rankings, McEnroe however believes his Group World can safe a 3rd consecutive title on the group occasion.
“I believe each Laver Cup we have performed, 9 of the Prime 10 Europeans have been there,” McEnroe mentioned, when requested about his group’s off-field cohesion throughout a pre-event press convention. “So I believe that group spirit is what in the end acquired us to victory and saved us very shut in different video games. That is a fantastic level.”
Not that McEnroe doesnβt have some high ATP Tour expertise to ship out into the courtroom at Uber Enviornment. His squad is led by world No. 7 Taylor Fritz, who can be competing for the primary time since reaching his first Grand Slam remaining on the US Open earlier this month. Frances Tiafoe, Ben Shelton, Alejandro Tabilo, Francisco Cerundolo and Thanasi Kokkinakis spherical out the Group World lineup.
Fritz was reluctant to entertain solutions that he would turn out to be some sort of ‘chief’ inside his group in Berlin, saying as a substitute that every member of Group World is ready to take particular person accountability of their bid to retain the Laver Cup.
“On this competitors, it is as much as every of us to do our half to get the factors,” the American mentioned. “One particular person cannot win it. Everybody has a job to do. [After the US Open] I had a couple of days off to loosen up, simply to take pleasure in a while off after two lengthy weeks, after which I began getting again into it a couple of days earlier than and I did some good workout routines right here, to get myself prepared for this weekend.β
β¨ ππππ ππππππ π―π¬ ππππ@LaverCup | #LaverCup photo.twitter.com/bLc6xxIOhf
β ATP Tour (@atptour) September 18, 2024
One man trying to keep his excellent Laver Cup file is Shelton, who made his debut in Group Worldβs complete win in Vancouver final 12 months. The 21-year-old is used to working in a group format, having performed collegiate tennis on the College of Florida in 2021 and 2022.
“It is actually enjoyable for me,” Shelton mentioned, when requested about returning to a group format. “Professional tennis is rather a lot completely different than faculty tennis. More often than not, all the things is by yourself shoulders, so it is good to have the ability to depend on your teammates generally. Group World, now we have a variety of guys which might be dependable, particularly Taylor Fritz. That man is rock strong. It is loopy. I believe it is a particular occasion to be part of.
βI am simply grateful that I acquired to play right here two years in a row as a result of I really like the group ambiance and I really like cheering on my guys and competing when I’ve guys on the sidelines cheering for me.β
Chile’s Tabilo and Argentina’s Cerundolo will convey a South American flavour to the 2024 version of Group World.
Will probably be Tabilo’s debut on the Laver Cup. In July, he rose to nineteenth within the PIF ATP rankings, a private greatest, after a collection of high-quality performances within the first half of 2024. The 27-year-old was nonetheless outdoors the Prime 100 in November final 12 months, however will now play for Group World in ATP legend McEnroe’s final match as captain.
“It is fairly surreal. I imply, as a legend within the sport like [McEnroe] provides us suggestions and all the things, that is good,” Tabilo mentioned. “After all I will attempt to use that for the remainder of my profession. It is positively going to assist me this week and hopefully the entire 12 months.”