U.S. Davis Cup Team May Play Aussies on Clay

The powers behind the United States Davis Cup team are apparently close to a rare choice for its final against Australia--a clay court surface.

The United States has played host to 28 other Davis Cup finals, but only two were played on clay, in 1964 and 1971.

David Markin, president of the United States Tennis Assn., indicated Thursday that clay might be selected instead of an indoor carpet or concrete.

“I think clay would probably be very good to complement the talents of our players,” Markin said.

Although the United States has not announced who will play against Australia, Nov. 30-Dec. 2 in St. Petersburg, Fla., a clay court would probably ensure appearances by Andre Agassi and Michael Chang, who joined the doubles team of Rick Leach and Jim Pugh in a 3-2 semifinal victory over Austria last month in Vienna.

Markin said that team captain Tom Gorman will pick the team and that the choice of court surface will be revealed next Thursday at a news conference.

A business associate of Agassi said that both Gorman and Markin had asked Agassi what kind of surface he would prefer for the final and that Agassi had told them clay.

It might be that red clay, of the type on which the French Open is played, is too expensive to import from Europe. A slightly faster surface of synthetic clay, called Har-Tru, would probably be the choice.

If the United States does play on clay, it will be a serious disadvantage for the Australians, who thrive on faster surfaces, such as grass and concrete. Neither Pat Cash nor Wally Masur, expected to play singles, has a winning record on clay. Cash is 19-25 and Masur 13-33.

Chang, the 1989 French Open champion, and Agassi, runner-up to Andres Gomez in this year’s final, are baseliners who thrive on slower surfaces. Agassi is 55-15 on clay, Chang 21-9.

Tennis legend Jack Kramer said a shift to clay would be a good move.

“It would play right into our hands, with guys like Chang and Agassi, and also put the Australians on a surface they don’t really like,” Kramer said. “I think it makes perfect sense and would be darned smart.”

The United States has not won the Davis Cup since 1982, when it defeated France, 3-2, on a clay court in Grenoble.

In the 1964 final in Cleveland, the United States tried to slow down the heavily favored Australian team led by Rod Laver and Roy Emerson by playing on clay, but Australia won, 3-2, with Emerson defeating Chuck McKinley in the deciding match.

The 1971 final at Charlotte, N.C., was played on clay for a different reason: The USTA felt sorry for Romania, a country of clay-court specialists, so it built a clay court against the wishes of its players, including Cliff Richey, who quit the team in protest.

The United States beat Romania, 3-2, for its fourth consecutive Davis Cup.