Kafelnikov gets close to final goal
Pritha Sarkar
Yevgeny Kafelnikov has had only one thing on his mind all year -- to win the Davis Cup for Russia before hanging up his racket for good.
While the 28-year-old has been chanting his Davis Cup mantra at every opportunity throughout the year, the trophy is at last within touching distance after Kafelnikov and Marat Safin steered Russia into their third final with victory over Argentina at the weekend.
Hoping to spoil Kafelnikov's farewell party will be the likes of Sebastien Grosjean, Arnaud Clement, Fabrice Santoro or any other willing candidate picked by captain Guy Forget, who will be hoping to lead France to their 10th Davis Cup triumph.
The French will host the final but the venue has yet to be decided.
"Davis Cup keeps me going as I want to win it badly before I retire," Kafelnikov said as far back as February during the Rotterdam ATP tournament.
Having bagged the French and Australian Open crowns, the often outspoken Russian feels he has little left to prove, except perhaps in the sport's premier team competition.
Despite guiding Russia into the finals twice during the 1990s, Kafelnikov clearly feels he will have unfinished business in his career unless he manages to land a first Davis Cup title for his country this year.
"I want it so badly that it puts pressure on me," admitted the world number seven. "I have won majors so there is nothing left to prove there but the Davis Cup remains the main focus."
SPARED DILEMMA
Kafelnikov's commitment to Russia's Davis Cup cause was apparent on Friday after he hung on to win a five-set thriller in his opening singles match against Argentina's Gaston Gaudio.
If that was not enough to test Kafelnikov, he and Marat Safin were then embroiled in a marathon six hours 20 minutes doubles clash -- the longest ever doubles match in the tournament's history -- before losing out to Argentina's Lukas Arnold and David Nalbandian 19-17 in the final set.
Safin's four-set win over Wimbledon runner-up Nalbandian on Sunday gave the Russians a winning 3-1 lead in the semi-final and thankfully spared Kafelnikov the dilemma of whether to test his reserves in a nerve-jangling deciding rubber.
Kafelnikov's desire to win the event has also put extra strain on Safin.
"Yevgeny keeps telling me all the time 'I want to retire, I want to quit, let's go and win the Davis Cup this year,'" Safin said. "Of course, I want to win it for him, but it gives you so much extra pressure that can harm you at the last minute."
Although Kafelnikov has geared his whole year towards the November 29-December 1 final by drastically cutting down on his ATP schedule to preserve himself for the Cup, his French counterparts are in buoyant mood to defend their title on home turf.
Having disposed of the United States without much trouble in the semifinals, Forget's troops -- who spectacularly upset the Australians in the final last year -- will be looking to extend their hold on the event after reaching their third final in four years.
"It's going to be really tough. The French team can play on any surface and have many different players they can use," said Russian number one Safin.
"However, we don't have anything to lose, and if we are confident, who knows what can happen."
