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Jack Sock at the official dinner.
© Ron Angle
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Denis Kudla at the official dinner.
© Ron Angle
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Up-and-coming American junior players Jack Sock and Denis Kudla were chosen by U.S. Davis Cup Captain Patrick McEnroe to serve as practice partners for the U.S. team when it takes on Serbia in the Davis Cup first round, March 5-7, in Belgrade. The two young stars will share the experiences of their trip in an exclusive blog for USTA.com. Check back daily for updates.
Jack Sock, Saturday, March 6, 2010
Hey guys, it's Jack. Had a great day here in Belgrade!
Denis and I woke up, had breakfast and headed to the arena. The whole team was pumped for the doubles today. Little did we know Mike B got food poisoning last night from room service. He wasn't himself in the warm-up, which made us a little uncomfortable going into the doubles against Zimonjic and Tipsarevic. Doc did the best he could to get him back to normal, but last minute, we realized he wasn't going to be able to compete, so it was time to sub in Johnny Iz.
At first, we were thinking Bob and John were going to be tough breaks, and we were right. They both served great, and both came up huge at the right times. After 3 1/2 hours of cheering at the top of our lungs, Bob and John got the job done! So big time!! Congrats, boys!
Now we're still in this, and tomorrow will test John, considering he's playing Djokovic on home turf, trying to clinch it for Serbia. But I got a good feeling about this one! If John pulls through, I'll take Querrey over Troicki any day, so let's hope he gets the chance.
The team had a good night, and we're going to be ready to go tomorrow. The first match is at 3 our time, so if you can watch back home, I highly suggest it! It'll be a good one! GOOO USA!!!!
Denis Kudla, Friday, March 5, 2010
Hey everyone. Today was a very long and eventful day of tennis. We were able to watch two great matches that unfortunately did not go in favor of the U.S.
The day started with a great workout in the morning before all the guys came to the site. We lifted weights and basically crushed it in the gym with the legend Rodney Marshall, aka The Rocket. It has been awesome so far this trip with lifting and hitting.
After lifting, we got to take a break, then we warmed up the guys and got them ready for their matches. Once the matches started, we got pumped, and John Isner took the court first and had a battle. After that match, Sam Querrey and Novak Djokovic played a great match that I was on the edge of my seat for.
I hope that the U.S. can come back and take this tie. GO USA!
Jack Sock, Thursday, March 4, 2010
Hey everyone, it's Jack. We had a great day of practice today with the guys. Sam was playing GREAT -- ripping forehands all over the place. Denis and I got the opportunity to play the Bros in some sets, they are so good! We had a pretty good first set, lost it 3-6, then had a quick 2nd set. You guys don't need to know the score.
After practice we had some lunch, then the team went to the Embassy residence (incredible house) and hung out for a little bit.
I can't wait to see the guys go to battle tomorrow. John plays first against Viktor Troicki, then Sam plays after against Novak Djokovic. I'm feeling good about our guys, but we'll see how it goes! Let's go USA!!!!
Denis Kudla, Wednesday, March 3, 2010
The past couple of days have been pretty fun. I was able to hit a lot with the Bryan brothers and John Isner.
It has not been an easy week so far, though. I ended up losing my bags in the beginning, and to this point I still havent received my rackets, but fortunately I got my clothes yesterday.
We have had a lot of fun hanging out with the guys and getting to know them a little better and seeing how they train. Yesterday we got to go to the local mall and see the guys do an event with the Serbian team and play a little mini tennis with the kids. It was pretty funny to see the kids play, and I enjoyed watching it. We have also had the opportunity to play a couple games of Two Up, Two Back with the Bryan brothers and beat them in one game, and it made our day!
So far the environment is unbelievable, and the match looks like it's going to be wild. The whole stadium is huge, and I cant wait for play to begin.
That's all for now. Jack and I will let you know more tomorrow.
Jack Sock, Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Hey guys. Sorry I didn't write earlier. We've had some busy days lately.
I've been practicing with Sam and the Bryans, and it's very helpful. Sam and I have had some good practices just hitting a lot of balls on the dirt and grinding some baseline games. Denis and I have been attempting to play the Bryans in 2 up 2 back, and somehow we won a game. Cmonnn! They weren't too happy.
Outside of practice, I've been doing fitness with the coolest strength coach there is -- ROCKET. Last night the team went to a local mall to do a community event with little kids that play tennis, and it was pretty cool. After, Mike B attempted to give me a guitar lesson, and let's just say I am not a very quick learner with instruments.
So far the trip has been a blast and I'm learning a lot. I'll check back in tmrw.
Peace.
Denis Kudla and Jack Sock, Sunday, Feb. 28, 2010
Hey everyone, it's Denis and Jack. It was a rough trip here, but we finally made it to Belgrade, Serbia. Combined, we spent 59 hours trying to get here.
(Jack) My journey started by flying out of Ft. Lauderdale to Chicago and having a layover of 3 hours. Then, I flew 7 1/2 hours to London. To pass the time, I watched "The Blind Side" (incredible movie) and "Couples Retreat" (hilarious). After the movies, I slept the rest of the way and then woke up to find Coach Berger and me having to hustle to the next gate, only to miss our connecting flight. So, we sat in London Heathrow for 5 hours and then finally got a flight to Belgrade, where they didn't have my clothes bag. The night ended well with a good dinner and talking with Denis, Sam and John. I'll be back tomorrow to tell you guys what's going on. Go USA!!! Beat Canada!!
(Denis) My journey was quite similar, except for the destinations and movies and layovers. I flew out of Washington, D.C. and flew into Paris with a 7-hour grind of a flight on the window crushed. I passed the time by watching the incredible movie of "Law Abiding Citizen" and attempting to sleep for 4 hours. Once I arrived in Paris, my flight got canceled, and I was stuck in Paris from 6 a.m. Paris time, and I ended up leaving at 1:30 p.m. I was running around the airport and standing in the slowest lines ever. When I finally arrived in Belgrade, I went to baggage claim to find that none of my bags made it. So I am stuck today with no racquets and no clothes, but I am enjoying the experience so far with the whole team, and this should be a fun week.
We will touch base with you guys tomorrow. Good night from Serbia!
Denis and Jack