Veteran Forget Takes New Captain Enqvist To Davis Cup School

They may have been battling it out on opposite sides of the court in the final of the Grand Champions Brasil on Sunday, but earlier in the week Guy Forget gave the benefit of his vast Davis Cup experience to fellow captain Thomas Enqvist.

Forget, who has captained France for more than a decade, was glad to give tips and advice to Enqvist, who was appointed Swedish Davis Cup Captain last year.

Frenchman admitted that he wished someone with experience had helped him through the more difficult aspects of the job when he first started.

“Thomas asked me how I deal with certain situations because it’s all brand new to him and I’ve been through it all before,” he said. “We just exchanged ideas and I told him that when you’re captain you have to be strict but also sometimes you have to be able to bend the rules as well because you’re dealing with professionals and you have to feel out what’s right. I think that’s the thing that’s most difficult about being a captain, knowing where to let go a bit and when to stick to the rules. You have four or five guys and everyone in the team should feel equal and no one person should feel differently to any others, otherwise the spirit of the team is gone.”

Enqvist explained how grateful he is to have the guidance of someone as experienced as Forget.

“Guy was a very smart tennis player and he’s done really well as a Davis Cup captain so it was interesting to hear about his experiences,” he said. “He was giving me advice about handling your team and various different situations that can arise and it was really useful so I’m happy he was kind enough to share all that with me.”

Forget, who has led his country to victory in 2001, also said he believes Enqvist is set for a successful reign as Sweden’s Davis Cup Captain.

“I think Thomas has the makings of a really good Davis Cup Captain,” he said. “He’s been there and he knows the feelings the players have and he was a great Davis Cup player for his country himself. He’s a humble guy, he’s smart and he knows the game and I think he’ll give that all back to the players. I hope the young Swedish players realise that they’re lucky to have a captain like Enqvist.”

France will play Spain in a World Group quarterfinal in July, while Sweden will take on Italy in September in a play-off to try to get into the 2011 World Group.

Sao Paulo was the fifth of ten stops on the ATP Champions Tour in 2010, which culminates with a season-ending AEGON Masters event at London’s Royal Albert Hall from 30th November to 5th December. The season began in February in Delray Beach, where Pat Rafter beat John McEnroe in the final. At the second event in Zurich in March, Stefan Edberg overcame Goran Ivanisevic in three sets. Following that Enqvist beat Ferreira in the final in Bogotá, having swept through the tournament without the loss of a set. At the most recent event in Barcelona, Enqvist saw his unbeaten run halted in the final by Ivanisevic. The Tour will next call in at Graz, Austria, followed by events in Algarve (Portugal), Paris (France) and London (UK).

To view the order of play and the round-robin groups, click results.