King of Te Anau eyes all-important Davis Cup showdown
“It’s good to be down here in Invercargill… I’m really impressed with the stadium, with the velodrome and facilities. It’s a great setup here.”
Leading New Zealand tennis player Rubin Statham has advocated in recent years for bringing a Davis Cup tie to Southland.
The 36-year-old Davis Cup veteran has been a regular visitor to the Te Anau Tennis Invitational each December.
He’s won the tournament seven times and is a big fan of Te Anau and the people that put on the event. Statham has backed a previous bold bid from Te Anau tennis officials to get a Davis Cup tie to the small northern Southland town.
While it hasn’t quite made it to Te Anau, it has arrived in Southland.
The New Zealand-Thailand Group 2 tie wil be played at ILT Stadium Southland in Invercargill on Friday and Saturday.
“All of the top [New Zealand] players have played events in Te Anau before and I was really keen to get a Davis Cup event in this region, especially Te Anau. So, it’s great that we are close by.”
Statham has never played in Invercargill before. He has built a remarkable Davis Cup career that has stretched 18 years.
It started just after the last time a Davis Cup tie was held in Invercargill, which was in 2004 when New Zealand played India.
“It’s good to be down here in Invercargill… I’m really impressed with the stadium, with the velodrome and facilities. It’s a great setup here.”
“You’ve got the gym inside the velodrome, you’ve got the indoor tennis courts there, it’s a full package with everything an athlete needs to train. I haven’t seen that before in New Zealand.”
Friday and Saturday are important for the New Zealand men’s tennis team as it tries to push itself from Group 2 to the topflight in the Davis Cup.
“We were in Group 1 for 13 years and now we are in Group 2. We are going to try and get back up there.”
Statham is pleased to be reunited with New Zealand’s portable tennis surface which they will play on at ILT Stadium Southland.
“It’s kind of like a jigsaw that fits together, that you can transport and put the pieces together to create the tennis court.
“We used that in the Davis Cup many years ago and this is the first time we have played on it for probably seven or eight years.
“It’s kind of like seeing an old friend because I’ve played many ties on that successfully. I turned up here [in Invercargill] and saw my old friend and hoped on. It’s nice to be back on the court.”
While the focus for the next two days is on the Davis Cup it would be remiss not to check in with Statham if he will shoot for an eighth Te Anau Tennis Invitational title in December.
“100 percent I’ll be there. I’ve been there seven times so this will be my eighth time there. I’m seven out of seven, I’ve got to keep that streak going.
“It’s an amazing tournament, Ian Willians and the team there do a fantastic job. I’ll be back, it’s a perfect way to start the year down there in Te Anau.”
The Davis Cup action starts at 4pm on Friday and 12 noon on Saturday.