Davis Cup Coming to the Forum

Thanks to a team of tennis players from the Czech Republic few have heard of, the next U.S. Davis Cup match will be played at the Great Western Forum rather than UCLA.

John McEnroe, new Davis Cup captain, pretty much made the site announcement from Zimbabwe, shortly after his team had survived a 3-2 scare last Sunday, when he said, “I’d like to play at the Forum. I think the Forum would be great.”

What he didn’t say, but undoubtedly knew, was that the deciding factor for him and the U.S. Tennis Assn. was who won the match between England and the Czech Republic, the winner being the next U.S. opponent. Had England won, the April 7-9 match in Los Angeles would have probably gone to UCLA, an outdoor facility where wind and sun would take a bit more away from England’s top player, serve-and-volleyer Tim Henman, than the controlled indoor conditions at the Forum.

But the Czechs stunned the British, 4-1, and now a team probably consisting of Jiri Novak, Bohdan Ulihrach, Slava Dosedel and David Rikl will come to the Forum to play indoor tennis on a surface that will be much discussed and calculated in the weeks ahead by McEnroe and the USTA.

The most logical would be a medium-fast hard court, playing into the hands of a U.S. team that will be led by Andre Agassi, the world’s No. 1 player, who has committed to the Davis Cup effort for the season. The rest of the team would come from a selection of Pete Sampras, Chris Woodruff, Alex O’Brien, Rick Leach, Jim Courier and Jared Palmer. O’Brien, Leach and Palmer are the doubles specialists. Woodruff was the hero of the Zimbabwe match, and Courier is a veteran Davis Cup player.

Todd Martin, recent team member, is out of the picture. He injured ankle ligaments playing basketball Wednesday and will be out until May.

Sampras, arguably the best tennis player ever, has a slightly more tenuous situation with the Davis Cup. He had committed to play in Zimbabwe, then hurt his hip in his semifinal five-set loss to Agassi at the Australian. In a news conference the day he announced he would have to skip Zimbabwe, he said he thought he’d be ready for the next round of Davis Cup. But since then, the ever-controversial McEnroe has made statements that appear to be digs at Sampras.

First, McEnroe said he wasn’t sure Sampras had wanted to go to Zimbabwe in the first place. Then, shortly after the win in Zimbabwe, McEnroe said that he might just “keep this team like it is.”

One person who became a huge Czech Republic fan last weekend was Laker Vice President Jeanie Buss, a longtime tennis fan and event promoter.

“For 20 years, getting a Davis Cup match here has been one of my great priorities,” Buss said.

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Davis Cup Facts

The United States faces the Czech Republic in the second round:

* When: April 7-9.

* Where: Great Western Forum.

* Possible U.S. team: Captain John McEnroe is considering Andre Agassi, Pete Sampras, Chris Woodruff, Alex O’Brien, Rick Leach, Jared Palmer and Jim Courier. Deadline to name the team is March 28.

* Possible Czech Republic team: Jiri Novak, Slava Dosedel, David Rikl, Bohdan Ulihrach.

* Tickets: On sale Feb. 21, with prices ranging from $20 to $450. Call TicketMaster at (213) 480-3232.