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McEnroe who last played on the ATP Tour in 1994 nominated himself for the team after injuries forced world-ranked

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McEnroe, who last played on the ATP Tour in 1994, nominated himself for the team after injuries forced world-ranked No. 1 Andre Agassi and third-ranked Pete Sampras to withdraw.McEnroe said Martin and Gambill are guaranteed spots on the team in either singles, doubles or both. He said the final two spots will be determined solely by practice results in Spain."I'd rather not play," McEnroe said. "There's a part of me that is excited because I love Davis Cup.

But I want to win."McEnroe said the doubles team will be selected from a group including himself, Martin and Gambill. McEnroe, named Davis Cup captain in September, expressed concern with playing the injury-prone Martin in two singles and a doubles match over three days. The decision came after McEnroe spoke to Spadea during the past three days."I wanted to speak to him to see where his head was at," said McEnroe after a straight-set victory over Andres Gomez in a senior tour event. "He's been on a terrible run, but he's the type of player that can pull an upset."Regardless of the team's makeup, McEnroe still considers the United States huge "underdogs" against Spain on its favourite red-clay surface."The only good news is that Spain has historically underachieved and choked," he said. "We'll see if they do it again."Sampras, fresh off his record-setting 13th Grand Slam title after winning Wimbledon last Sunday, pulled out of the Spain tie due to acute tendinitis above his left ankle.Agassi, who lost in the Wimbledon semifinals to Patrick Rafter, strained his back after being involved in an automobile accident on Sunday in Las Vegas McEnroe is the most successful player in U.S. Davis Cup history, having compiled a 41-8 singles record and 18-2 in doubles.

McEnroe, who has appeared in a U.S.-record 30 Davis Cup ties, last played in the 1992 finals when the Americans defeated Switzerland.McEnroe led the United States to five Davis Cup titles and appearances in seven finals.. Austrailia cruised into a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five Davis Cup semi-final with Brazil yesterday, with the grass surface in Brisbane proving to be to the home players' liking. Austrailia cruised into a 2-0 lead in the best-of-five Davis Cup semi-final with Brazil yesterday, with the grass surface in Brisbane proving to be to the home players' liking. Neither the losing Wimbledon finalist Pat Rafter nor the teenager Lleyton Hewitt dropped a set in their opening singles matches against Gustavo Kuerten and Fernando Meligeni respectively.Rafter eased past French Open champion Kuerten 6-3 6-2 6-3 to set the ball rolling for the defending champions, while Hewitt strengthened Australia's advantage with a 6-4 6-2 6-3 victory over left-hander Meligeni to move within one rubber of advancing to the final between December 8 and 10.The winner of the semi-final will play either Spain or the United States, who meet in Santander next weekend."Our guys did what had to be done and what probably showed out in the end was that their games are more experienced on grass," said the Australian captain, John Newcombe.Just five days after his deflating loss to Pete Sampras in the Wimbledon final, Rafter had little trouble getting past Kuerten, who could not come to grips with Rafter's net play and the low, inconsistent bounce. Kuerten - whose groin injury threatens to keep him out of tomorrow's doubles match - was frequently driven off balance by his opponent's clever angles and touch.It was Rafter's first singles match in the Davis Cup since his shoulder operation last year and his first since helping Australia beat the United States 4-1 win in Boston last July.Hewitt, however, was not as typically bullish as he was during his memorable win over Russia's Yevgeny Kafelnikov here last September."Last year I was the underdog against Kafelnikov, whereas this year he (Meligeni) was the underdog and I was meant to win convincingly.

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