Llodra makes Davis Cup final team

 

Originally published on: 23/11/10 15:19

Michael Llodra has been selected in France’s team to face Serbia in the Davis Cup final on December 3-5.

Llodra, 30, fought off other contenders including Richard Gasquet, who becomes the reserve, and Julien Benneteau to be selected and will join up with the world No.12 Gael Monfils, Gilles Simon and Arnaud Clement.

Llodra’s run to the semis at the BNP Paribas Masters two week’s ago proved to be the deciding factor as it helped lift his world ranking up 11 places to 23rd, rising above closest rival Gasquet. Llodra’s bid for a place was also helped by defeating Serbia’s No.1 Novak Djokovic in the quarters in Paris.

“This victory will bring him a lot of confidence,” said Forget. “It will also force Djokovic to be more cautious. Both players, however, are smart enough to know that Bercy and Belgrade will be two different things but Michael did bother him and that’s a good point.”

The French team suffered a big set back at the beginning of the month when their No.1 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga was forced to finish his season early due to a knee injury. But luckily for Forget the crucial picks were made easier by performances in Paris with Monfils also in terrific shape after defeating both Andy Murray and Roger Federer to reach the final.

Meanwhile, Serbia have named a four-man squad with world No.3 Novak Djokovic leading their charge, along with Kremlin Cup champ Viktor Troicki, Janko Tipsarevic and Nenad Zimonjic, who will attempt to capture their countries first Davis Cup title in front of a packed home crowd in Belgrade.

Davis Cup Final
Serbia vs. France
Venue: Belgrade Arena, Belgrade, Serbia
Date: December 3-5
Serbia: Novak Djokovic, Viktor Troicki, Janko Tipsarevic, Nenad Zimonjic Captain: Bogdan Obradovic
France: Gael Monfils, Michael Llodra, Gilles Simon, Arnaud Clement, Captain: Guy Forge

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