(Montreal) There would probably have been a really important reason for Sylvain Bruneau not to be in Vancouver, where the qualifying duel for the Billie-Jean-King Cup — the women’s equivalent of the Davis Cup — will begin on Friday between Canada and Belgium. Because it will be an opportunity for the Quebec tennis man to combine business with pleasure.
The one who contributed to the finest moments of Bianca Andreescu’s young career in the role of coach, about four years ago, is at the other end of the country in her role as senior consultant, women’s tennis, at Tennis Canada. But at the same time, he will have the opportunity to bathe in the atmosphere of a date he loves.
“It’s a big event. It’s an opportunity for the girls who still play, year-round, just for themselves on the tour. Yes, they represent Canada, but they are still there for themselves. There, you are really playing for Canada. You play in Canada. I think it’s another big tennis event. We’re trying to increase the popularity of tennis, and I think it’s important to have events like this in Vancouver,” said Bruneau, who experienced his first moments at the Fed Cup – the former name of the Billie-Jean-King Cup – in 2004.
Also, according to Bruneau, an event like the Billie-Jean-King Cup brings a completely different dynamic for the athletes who participate, and also for the tennis fans who attend.
“You have the crowd that lines up behind the players, the atmosphere is quite different from what we experience during the year. It’s a team competition with the captain who is on the field, who coach the player. You have the bench which is completely on fire behind each of the players, which is involved in each of the strikes, on each of the points. I think it’s a different dynamic. I think for tennis fans, it’s a great moment. You are always asked to watch the tennis, to say nothing, to applaud. There, it is an overexcited atmosphere. You put it all together and it’s a winning formula. »
Bruneau describes a sensation that Canada experienced and felt not so long ago. In November in Spain, the cream of men’s tennis in the country, including Quebec’s Félix Auger-Aliassime and Ontario’s Denis Shapovalov, joined forces to bring the prestigious Davis Cup back to Canada for the first time in its history.
Bruneau is proud of this unprecedented result and he hopes to see the women’s team achieve a similar feat, one day not too far away, at the Billie-Jean-King Cup, whose Finals will take place in November.
However, there is a first step to take, and it will begin on Friday with two hard court singles matches at the Pacific Coliseum.
Canada will enter this duel with two athletes ranked inside the top 100 in singles in Leylah Fernandez (50e) and Rebecca Marino (81e), and with one of the best doubles players in the world in Gabriela Dabrowski, as evidenced by her seventh place in the world rankings of the discipline.
In addition, captain Heidi El Tabakh will not be able to count on the presence of Andreescu, 27e player in the world, victim of an ankle injury during the Miami tournament, about three weeks ago. Katherine Sebov, 136e in the world, has been called in as reinforcements.
“Obviously, I was very disappointed. Clearly. She’s our number 1 player,” Bruneau admitted of the absence of her former protege, whose career continues to be littered with pitfalls.
“But I also know that the player replacing Bianca, Katherine Sebov, is playing great tennis right now. It’s a girl who goes up. I know the best is yet to come for her. She’s a hard worker and I’m also happy that she has this chance. When Katherine told me that she would accept the invitation and that she would be here to defend the colors of Canada, it was easier to take,” added Bruneau.
Like Canada, Belgium will not rely on all its best assets. Elise Mertens, 29e in the world in singles, will not be in Vancouver. Her best singles player will be Ysaline Bonaventure, currently 86e in the world.
However, in the Canadian camp, we will certainly not take Bonaventure lightly, she who in turn eliminated Marino and Fernandez during the ASB Classic in Auckland, New Zealand, last January on the hard surface.
Moreover, according to the rankings published last November, Canada occupied the sixth place in the hierarchy of women’s tennis, eight levels ahead of Belgium.
Canada is therefore the favorite, on paper. Confident, Bruneau is also a wise man. For this reason, he reminds us that everything will be decided on the court.
“I don’t take anything for granted; it will be played on the field. I trust our girls, our girls are playing well. We have a good preparation, things are going exactly as we wanted. From that side, everything is fine. But I think they (the Belgians) will give it their all and it won’t be an easy game,” he concluded.
