Youth to be served in Uzbekistan Davis Cup team

Youth to be served in Uzbekistan Davis Cup team

Musthofid, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

In a surprising move, Uzbekistan has chosen youth over
experience for its Davis Cup Asia-Oceania Group I tie against
Indonesia beginning on Friday.

The visitors will field Cup first-timers Denis Istomin and
Farrukh Dustov, both 19. Based on Wednesday's draw conducted by
referee David Crymble of New Zealand, Istomin will meet 29-year-
old Suwandi, while Dustov plays Prima Simpatiaji, 24, in the
opening day's singles matches on the main hard court in Senayan,
Central Jakarta.

Indonesia's nonplaying captain Tintus Arianto Wibowo was among
those surprised by the omission of Vadim Kutsenko -- a member of
Uzbekistan's team in two previous wins over Indonesia -- from the
singles lineup.

Vadim is only slated to play in Saturday's doubles with Murad
Inoyatov against Suwandi and veteran Bonit Wiryawan, with the
reverse singles matches to be played on Sunday.

Despite the higher rankings of the Uzbeks, Tintus was
heartened by the draw and the reliance on the young players.

"They have taken on a challenge by fielding young players. I
hope Suwandi and Prima can draw on their experience to push their
way to victory," Tintus said.

Suwandi, who has played in the Davis Cup since 1993, did not
want to rate his chances.

"I will play as best I can," said Suwandi, who is playing the
tie despite the death of his grandmother on Saturday.

Vadim, 28, said he was recovering from a respiratory infection
and the Jakarta tie would provide a good opportunity for the
younger players to gain experience.

"I hadn't practiced for two weeks because of an infectious
virus inside her," Vadim said while pointing to his chest.

"I only resumed training on Saturday last week. I'm feeling
better but I'm not in good shape to play the singles. I would
love to play in the singles."

He believed Istomin and Dustov would rise to the occasion.

"They are strong players. They have been playing in many
tournaments in Europe with good results."

The teams are playing each other for the third time since 2001
after Uzbekistan lost to Thailand 4-1 in the Group I semifinals
while Indonesia crushed New Zealand 5-0 in playoffs last year.

Vadim said he was used to Jakarta's hot weather after playing
here in individual tournaments and in the Davis Cup in 2001.

"Our problem is that we have to play outdoors while we have
been practicing indoor in Tashkent because of the freezing
weather. It's not good for us."

Meanwhile, in Carson, California, Andre Agassi, at age 35 and
a father of two, is still able to carve out time to play for his
country after a five-year absence.

Agassi, a member of three U.S. Davis Cup champions, will join
Andy Roddick and the doubles team of Mike and Bob Bryan as they
try to end America's 10-year losing streak by taking on Croatia.

"I think that when you get older, your capacity to embrace
special moments grows," Agassi said on Tuesday. "I certainly feel
that way this week.

"Coming here, I even requested from the home front a few extra
days to be able to enjoy being around the guys and getting to
know them better. That speaks to my enthusiasm about this
environment and how much I've missed it."