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FRANCE VS AUSTRALIA!!!

Let's start at the beginning kay?...

TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 30TH 1999:

The French and Australian teams have arrived in Nice, France, in the lead up
to this week's Centenary Final of the 1999 Davis Cup by NEC.

Both teams will put the final touches to their preparation with a series of
practice sessions on the clay court at the Nice Acropolis Palais Des
Espositions this week prior to Friday's opening singles rubbers.

The two teams for the Final as announced by respective Captains Guy Forget
and John Newcombe are:

France:
Cedric Pioline, Sebastian Grosjean, Fabrice Santoro and Olivier Delaitre.

Australia:
Mark Philippoussis, Lleyton Hewitt, Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge.

The official draw will be held at the Congress Nice Acropolis at 1.00 pm
local time on Thursday.

The Davis Cup by NEC is the largest annual international team competition in
sport with 129 nations participating in 1999. The Final is the culmination of
the centenary year of the Davis Cup competition and brings together two
nations that have dominated world sport in recent times, France being the
current football World Cup champion and Australia winning a trio of World
Cups in 1999 in cricket, rugby and netball.

Sporting rivalry between the two nations will be at its height in Nice with
sell-out crowds of passionate supporters guaranteed for each of the three
days. This is the ninth Davis Cup Final to be played in France but the first
in Nice. Sites for the other French Davis Cup Finals were Paris (1928-33);
Grenoble (1982) and Lyon (1991).

France first entered the Davis Cup competition in 1904, one year before
Australia. This is only the 13th meeting between the two nations with
Australia leading the series 9-3. It is the first time the two nations have
met in the Davis Cup Final.

The two nations have met four times on a clay court with each nation winning
twice: Australia in 1934 and 1935 and France in 1988 and 1991. This is their
second meeting on Indoor clay, France defeating Australia on an indoor clay
court at Clermont Ferrand in 1988.

On paper, the players favoured to played singles for Australia -
Philippoussis and Hewitt - have the advantage over their expected opponents
Pioline and Grosjean in previous match-ups, Philippoussis leading 2:0 over
Pioline and 1:0 over Grosjean and Hewitt leading the French No. 1 2:1 and
Grosjean 1:1.

Route to the Final:
France has played all three ties at home this year, defeating the Netherlands
in Nimes; Brazil in Pau and Belgium, also in Pau.

Australia has only had one home tie this year, against Russia in Brisbane in
the semifinals. In the opening round, Australia defeated Zimbabwe in Harare
and in the second round defeated the United States in Boston.

Champion Nations:
Australia has won the Davis Cup 26 times: 1907-09, 1911, 1914, 1919, 1939,
1950-53, 1955-57, 1959-62, 1964-67, 1973, 1977, 1983,1986
This is second only to the United States (31)

France has won the Davis Cup eight times: 1927-32, 1991, 1996
It has been one of the most successful nations this decade, reaching the
final three times.

Quotes:
"On paper, they are the favourites, but we are waiting for them at home, on
our surface, in front of our public. I'm glad we are playing Australia. If we
win, we might as well do it over a great and prestigious team in the Final,
especially for the Centenary Year."
Guy Forget, Captain of the French Davis Cup Team

"We are ready for anything the French are prepared to dish out. These guys
have dreamt of having their names engraved on that magnificent trophy, and
we're not prepared to let anything stand in our way."
John Newcombe, Captain of the Australian Davis Cup Team

Davis Cup Trophy on display:
The magnificent Davis Cup trophy will be in display in Nice throughout the
week leading up to the Davis Cup Final.

Davis Cup by NEC 2000
The proposed venue for the 2000 Davis Cup by NEC World Group first round tie
between Brazil and 1999 Finalist France to be played from 4-6 February, 2000,
has been confirmed as the Centro Municipal de Forianopolis, in Forianopolis,
Santa Catarina. The tie will be played outdoors on a clay court.

Proposed venues for the other first round ties as previously confirmed are:
Zimbabwe v USA, Harare, ZIM (Indoors, Hard)
Czech Republic v Great Britain, Ostrava, CZE (Indoors, Red Clay)
Spain v Italy, Murcia, ESP (Outdoors, Red Clay)
Russia v Belgium, Moscow, RUS (Indoors, Supreme)
Slovak Republic v Austria, Bratislava, SVK (Indoors, Green Set Carpet)
Germany v Netherlands, Leipzig, GER (Indoors, Taraflex)
Switzerland v Australia, Geneva, SUI (Indoors, Supreme)

NICE, France, Nov 30 (Reuters) - French captain Guy Forget placed extra
pressure on Lleyton Hewitt on Tuesday by claiming that the 18-year-old
Australian was the man to beat in the Davis Cup final starting in Nice on
Friday.

Forget, who won the Cup as a player in 1991 and 1996, said he felt Hewitt,
arguably the most impressive newcomer in recent years, was stronger than Mark
Philippoussis, Australia's number one singles player.

``My impression is that Lleyton Hewitt is stronger mentally, is faster and
more patient than Philippoussis,'' he said.

``Against Hewitt, I expect a tough dog-fight, a long and demanding struggle.
Unless the pressure is too much for him,'' he said.

Forget knows what experience can bring to such an event and he said Cedric
Pioline was the only player with a strong enough past record to be expected
not to crack.

The Australians appeared far more relaxed than their hosts as they made the
most of the facilities in the French Riviera city of Nice, but Hewitt
confessed some restlessness.

``I'm getting more nervous as it's getting closer. It'll be the most
important day in my career so far,'' he admitted.

``You must realise that I'm playing the final in my first Davis Cup. I can't
believe it even though I know I can beat anybody when I play well,'' he
added.

Philippoussis, a decent claycourt player, also said the pressure was getting
greater and greater.

``I feel good on this surface but the pressure is there. It's even greater
than in a Grand Slam final,'' said Philippoussis, who lost to compatriot Pat
Rafter in the U.S. Open final last year.

Australian captain John Newcombe appeared the only one fully relaxed before
Friday's first singles even though he admitted he felt compelled to win next
weekend.

``There's no real pressure but this year our teams in rugby union, cricket,
netball and hockey were all world champions. You feel obliged to emulate
them,'' he said.

Newcombe's main fear is not about the match itself but about the post-match
dinner.

Two years ago in Sydney, when the Australians beat the French in a Davis Cup
tie, then French captain Yannick Noah forced him to sing and dance in front
of cameras at the Sunday evening party.

``If I have to dance and sing with the French captain again, I'd rather do it
with Guy than Yannick. I'm not crazy,'' he said.
 

Standing taller
By LINDA PEARCE
NICE

It was September 1997, and Australia had taken its resurgent Davis Cup hopes
to the hardcourts of Washington D.C. The new US Open champion, Patrick
Rafter, and his mate and doubles partner, Mark Philippoussis, were there to
carry the singles load, and the Woodies would take care of the doubles. Even
with Pete Sampras across the net, a rare win on US soil seemed a possibility.

The reality was rather more harsh. The Americans won the semi-final 4-1, with
Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge bringing Australia's sole joy. Yet there
was also plenty of off-court action in that difficult Davis Cup fortnight, as
it emerged a few months later when Philippoussis and Rafter had split and the
big-serving lad from Williamstown had aired his considerable grievances
against captain John Newcombe and coach Tony Roche.

It had been around that time that a cancer-stricken Nick Philippoussis had
asked for more time and help from Roche for his son Mark. The approach was
declined for time reasons and, in one of the most bitter chapters in
Australia's proud and matey Davis Cup history, several teammates were drawn
into the ensuing torrent of angry
words, and Philippoussis was not to represent his country again for 18
months.

Yet there was also some lower-key action that September. It came in a
Washington restaurant during a dinner for about 16 Australian officials,
partners and friends, including president Geoff Pollard and his wife Eleanor.
During the evening, Newcombe stood and renounced the captaincy role he had
held for four years for just two wins in world group ties. Newcombe was out,
he announced. Coach Roche could have it all.

``Tony just said no,'' Newcombe recalled this week during an Australian
practice session at the Palais des Expositions in Nice, the site of this
weekend's Davis Cup final against France. ``He said, `We started this
together and we're going to finish it together'.''

Newcombe now says the curtain will fall at the end of 2001, regardless of
results. With second place the worst Australia can do this year, he and Roche
are expected to be reappointed for yet another of the 12-month terms they
prefer. If nothing else, with the first round against Switzerland brought
forward to early next February, changeover time would be limited even should
one be desired.

That will stretch the Newk-Roche era to eight years, nowhere near the reigns
of legendary cup custodians Harry Hopman and Neale Fraser, but several years
longer than either would have predicted when they succeeded Fraser, whose
last campaign took Australia to its most recent final, a 4-1 loss to Germany
in Dusseldorf in 1993.

Newcombe's critics would point out that it has taken Australia six years to
merely return to where he and Roche started; even supporters could not argue
it has been a period marked by controversy, voluntary and forced
unavailability, modest results (not helped, admittedly, by a plethora of away
ties) and the humiliation of relegation for the 1996 competition.

Which brings us to Budapest. September 1995. The world group qualification
round against Hungary, played on a clay-covered ice hockey rink and contested
in the absence of the injured No.1 Richard Fromberg by Todd Woodbridge and a
debutant Philippoussis. Beaten by a team of unknowns with a highest world
ranking of 190. A national disgrace branded ``unthinkable'' by a horrified
Fraser. Worse, even, than the great Mildura debacle of 1998.

Yet also something of a watershed, according to Newcombe. ``In my mind I can
track (the recovery) back to that. It was a real knockdown and Rochey and I
could have walked away from it at that stage and said `this is too hard', but
we told all the guys we believed in them and they had to get up and they had
to prove to everybody that they were better than that.

``Budapest was the real beginning for these guys. I mean they were knocked
down on the floor, and up until Budapest for an Australian to reach a
quarter-final of a Grand Slam they thought it was great. If you look at it,
after Budapest, in '96 we started getting to the semis of grand slams and in
'97 we won a grand slam (Rafter's first US Open). So Budapest was just a case
of the boys being knocked on the floor and us saying to them that they'd
better get up and stand taller.

``If you really want to earn something there's going to be hardships along
the way. You have to accept that, and you have to keep believing that it's
there and that you are a winning team. And every time a bad thing's happened
to us over the last six years we've come back a little bit stronger every
time.''
This year, it must be said, commendably strongly, with a team that Newcombe
says had grown progressively weaker on paper after a full-strength opening
round, but still kept rising to the increasingly big occasions. Seven players
have been used in contrasting conditions, indoors and outdoors, in three
countries. The old and the new have excelled.

There have also been disappointments, of course. The only doubles point
Australia has taken in 1999 was in Harare, where the Woodies won their 10th
straight match at this level, after which Woodbridge lost form, fitness and
confidence.

There are also still some mutterings about Newcombe's communication methods,
particularly long-distance, but Hewitt responds to his leadership and the
Woodies' results while in his care cannot be faulted. The captain has also
instilled a fiercely patriotic spirit in most of his squad, which may count
for plenty in what is sure to be a
loud and hostile French environment.

So to the future. Newcombe is confident there is a strong field of captaincy
candidates in the wings, headed by John Fitzgerald, Wally Masur and Darren
Cahill, and would like to see one chosen sooner rather than later next year
to facilitate a smooth changover. He also advocates the retention of the
two-man captain-coach system that frees Roche to concentrate on the on-court
preparations for 24 weeks of the year and leaves to Newcombe the duties of
chief motivator, strategist and public front man.

One reason Newcombe is keen to continue into 2001, he says, is to help
Rafter, recovering from shoulder surgery to repair a torn rotator cuff. ``I
thought Pat would be at his peak at this moment and playing the best tennis
of his career and now he's had this body blow,'' Newcombe said.

``It's going to be very tough for him next year; the first six months are
going to be very tough.''
The rest of the plan is for two of the sport's most famous Australian names
to retain a minor ongoing involvement, and Newcombe predicts a ``pretty
good'' next 15 years for Australian tennis. ``Now we've just got to keep
capturing the Lleyton Hewitts at 13, 14 years of age, and blooding them and
bringing them along and keeping them going.

``Someone else is going to be doing that, but Tony and I when we finish at
the end of next year will probably play some sort of role, looking at those
younger guys and whoever's in charge of Davis Cup tennis saying, `Hey, this
is the young guy you should take and brainwash them sort of into attitude
that we're after'.''
>From Friday, Newcombe, Roche and their team will be relying on Hewitt's
attitude, fighting spirit and love of the big occasion; on Philippoussis'
ability to overcome his nerves and hold his big game together on the
unforgiving red clay; and on the Woodies' experience and record despite their
recent decline and the final being played on
probably their worst surface.

For inspiration, all can look back on Rafter's comeback from a two-set
deficit against Cedric Pioline at White City in 1997, Hewitt's upset of Todd
Martin, or Jason Stoltenberg's heroics on Goran Ivanisevic's home court in
Split in 1996 that helped to retain Australia's place in the top 16. Nor, as
we have seen over the past six years, is there a shortage of tough times on
which to draw.

``Every time we get knocked down we've stood up as a team a little bit
higher, and through those six years, you see those things that have happened
to us, whether they be off the court or on the court, and each time we've
just hung in there and we've come back and stood a little taller,'' Newcombe
said. ``Now we're in a Davis Cup final.

So maybe this is the time when we stand the tallest of all.''
 

Newcombe tells why France will mark Philippoussis
DAVIS CUP by LINDA PEARCE

Nice: Australian captain John Newcombe believes the French will target the
perceived erratic tendencies of key singles player Mark Philippoussis in the
Davis Cup final starting here on Friday.

Newcombe said France hoped to exploit Philippoussis's limited experience of
five-set matches on clay - the surface on which Pete Sampras, Goran
Ivanisevic and others have found that power is rarely as important as
patience.

Philippoussis has a claycourt record of 35-23 and has performed well at the
World Team Cup in best-of-three-set matches, but this year showed his
frustration with the slow red dirt in a first-round loss to Jason Stoltenberg
at the French Open.

''This is a big test for Mark,'' Newcombe said during Australia's five-hour
practice session at the noisy Palais des Expositions.

''That's what the French are counting on, three out of five sets on clay and
keeping the ball in play. They'll be trying to wear him down.''

Philippoussis is ahead of Lleyton Hewitt as Australia's No1 singles player in
the final, despite having played just one tie - the first-round win over
Zimbabwe in Harare in April - in the two years since his falling-out with
Newcombe and coach Tony Roche.

The Victorian, with a 6-4 Cup record and Wayne Black his biggest victim, will
on Friday play French No2 Sebastien Grosjean, the 1996 world junior champion
so unfamiliar to the Australians that Newcombe watched him practise on
Monday.

Philippoussis, who will open the reverse singles on Sunday against world No13
Cedric Pioline, has played 10 matches since knee surgery after Wimbledon in
July and was the last to arrive at last week's Australian training camp in
San Remo.

Newcombe, asked on Sunday whether he was happy with Philippoussis's form
considering his lack of match practice, said: ''I don't know because we
haven't seen him. He needs a couple of hard days' focus now and he'll be
fine. He's been practising on a claycourt in Florida.''

The Newcombe-Philippoussis relationship continues to be pursued. Asked by the
Herald how Philippoussis was fitting in, Newcombe said: ''Yeah, the boys as a
team are here to do a job, and we've just got to get that done, whatever it
takes.''

French newspaper Le Journal Du Dimanche quoted Newcombe thus: ''With Mark
it's very difficult to explain. It would take me maybe an hour and still you
wouldn't understand. It's just better to say we've had our problems and now
he's back playing for us. End of story.''

And to a reporter from French sports daily L'Equipe, which staked out the
closed Australian camp at San Remo, Newcombe said: ''Everything's settled
now, but is anything perfect in this world?''

By Sunday, if Australia have claimed their first Davis Cup since 1986, and
the first on foreign soil since 1973, it may seem close. Despite injuries at
various times to Philippoussis, spearhead Pat Rafter and Todd Woodbridge,
they have made it to the final with 4-1 away wins over Zimbabwe and the US
and a 4-1 home defeat of Russia.

France are seeking their third title of the '90s, buoyed by their fourth home
tie for the year and the knowledge that 75 per cent of Cup ties have been won
by the host. Newcombe would not be drawn into a prediction on Australia's
first final in his six-year reign.

''I know what the French do at the French Open - better than at any other
tournament because of how the crowd lift them,'' he said.

''We'll have to see how our guys handle it. This would be the biggest match
that Lleyton's played, and possibly Mark, too. He's played the US Open final,
but it was a 50-50 crowd, whereas here you're in a Davis Cup final and things
are going to go berserk out there.''

THURSDAY, DECEMBER 1ST 1999:

PARIS, Dec 1 (Reuters) - France go into this weekend's Davis Cup final
against Australia on the verge of a remarkable hat-trick of triumphs this
decade.

Victory would ensure a third 1990s Davis Cup title for the hosts -- all won
as underdogs.

The French, who have won the cup eight times to Australia's 26, may enjoy
home advantage and with it choice of surface but the Australians are
otherwise the favourites.

France were equally underdogs when they upset the United States in Lyon in
1991 in a famous first victory for the team captained by Yannick Noah.

Five years later, Noah and his team travelled to Malmo where they upset hosts
Sweden for a second shock victory of the decade.

France had not previously won the trophy since the six successive victories
of the ``Musketeers'' between 1927 and 1932.

Australia, though, believe they can get the better of the French.

RESPECT FOR TRADITION

Their captain John Newcombe is relishing the final and said it was fitting it
should be between the two countries that took the Davis Cup most seriously.

``I think France and Australia are the nations with the biggest respect for
the tradition of the Davis Cup, even more than the Americans even though they
created the event,'' Newcombe told the French sports daily L'Equipe.

``It's really amazing that our two countries should meet for the last final
of the century,'' he said at Australia's training camp in San Remo, Italy.

The United States, who boast three of the world's top 10 in Andre Agassi,
Pete Sampras and Todd Martin, should regularly make the final but their
internal problems, which new captain John McEnroe is determined to end, means
they so often let themselves down.

Newcombe recognised that the French always play well in front of their
supporters and said that would give the hosts a big advantage.

Noah, a gifted motivator, handed the reins to one of his most loyal players
and one-time fellow professional Guy Forget this year.

Forget believes victory would be a major boost for the future of a talented
new generation of French players but he plays down his own importance.

PIOLINE UNBEATEN

``Once on the court, it's not Forget-Newcombe -- it's Pioline-Hewitt, you
can't lose sight of that,'' the French captain said.

``(Cedric) Pioline knows tennis too well for me to tell him how he's going to
win, for me to give him the miracle recipe,'' Forget said.

``I'm not a sorcerer, Yannick wasn't a sorcerer, Newcombe isn't a sorcerer.''

Forget is the one figure linking all three of France's exploits in the 1990s,
having played singles in 1991 and an impressive doubles with Guilaume Raoux
in Sweden in 1995.

French number one Pioline is the rock on which France have built their
success this year.

He is unbeaten in seven Davis Cup matches in 1999 including the doubles in
the first-round victory over the Netherlands.

He has got the better of leading players such as Richard Krajicek and Gustavo
Kuerten in the competition in which his serve-and-volley game has thrived on
the fast indoor surfaces of Nimes and Pau.

But now he and his team mates are switching to clay which Forget feels is the
right surface on which to play the Australians.
 

Cash says Scud's ready to explode

By Leo Shlink - Herald Sun

Pat Cash, the cult hero of two Australian Davis Cup triumphs, yesterday
delivered sobering warning to both France and Australia ahead of this week's
knife-edge final in Nice.

The 1987 Wimbledon champion predicated US Open finalist Mark Philippoussis
was poised to explode 'like a freight train' into French plans of lifting the
centenary cup.

But the feisty Victorian said John Newcombe's team should be wary of France.

Dismissing concerns Philippoussis had weakened Australia's chances of
securing it's 27th victory overall by delaying his arrival for practice on
the Riviera until Friday, Cash said the strapping right-hander was bursting
with confidence.

"Mark is like a freight train and they (the French) won't be able to stop
him," said London-based Cash, who was pivotal to Australian wins over Sweden
in 1983 and 1986.

"Only (Cedric) Pioline is good enough to go with him for a while, but I don't
know whether even Pioline can stick with him for the whole match."
"Whoever plays No. 2 (Sebastien Grosjean) for France won't be able to stop
him once he gets going."

While optimistic Australian can post its first win in 13 years, Cash said the
ability of Philippoussis and teenager Lleyton Hewitt to handle what is
certain to be raucous French crowd would be crucial.

"That crowd is going to be going absolutely nuts and it's going to be very,
very draining for both of our guys from the very first point." He said.

"But, in a way, Mark and Lleyton will be better playing away from home. There
will be less expectation than if they were playing at home and there will
probably be fewer nerves."

The former world No. 4 said Australia had
superior players -- technically and mentally -- to those of France, but
conceded the final was touch and go. "It's the same old story with tennis on
the big occasion, it all comes down to the day," Cash said.

"Whoever has the best day on the day will win. On paper, we're the
favourites, but paper doesn't win you matches. "What we have to do to make
sure of winning is to beat their No. 2 player twice. If you do that, you can
put a lot of pressure on their doubles team (Olivier Delaitre and Fabrice
Santoro) and then you get stuck into Pioline."

"With a bit of luck, Lleyton can beat Pioline again. He's done it twice this
year and he can do it again provided he settles down OK."

Cash's effort to catapult Australia to victories at Kooyong over Sweden
established the aggressive serve-volleyer in the pantheon of Australian Cup
greats, so much so that former captain Neale Fraser described Cash as the
best player to have played under him. His role in the '86 triumph was little
short of extraordinary.
Having downed Stefan Edberg in straight sets on the first day then partnering
John Fitzgerald to a win in the doubles, Cash ground out a magnificent
five-set win over Mikael Pernfors after trailing by two sets to love.

The achievement rates higher in Cash's mind than his march to the Wimbledon
title in '87 when he triumphed a succession of greats, including Mats
Wilander, Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl to land his only Grand Slam singles
title.

"Wimbledon was great, but it was a personal thing" Cash said. "But for team
spirit and doing it for Australia, you couldn't beat Davis Cup."

TEN: HEWITT: "I'LL PLAY MY WAY"
By Trevor Marshallsea

NICE, France, Dec 1 AAP - Australian Davis Cup dynamo Lleyton Hewitt has
vowed to stick to his own brand of tennis in the final against France,
despite taunts that his antics could further incite the crowd.

French captain Guy Forget stepped up the psychological battle leading into
the final by expressing doubts Hewitt, and fellow singles player Mark
Philippoussis, would have the temperament to shut out a parochial 10,000
crowd at Nice's Acropolis Exhibition Centre.

Forget also accused Philippoussis of mind games in saying how comfortable he
was on a red clay surface that was "faster than expected".

But overall, Tuesday was a day when the temperament of the 18-year-old Hewitt
came under the microscope looking ahead to his singles engagements with
30-year-old Cedric Pioline and 21-year-old Sebastien Grosjean.

Forget echoed Pioline's earlier comments that Hewitt's fist-pumping,
foot-stomping traits would further alienate a mob already sure to be hotly
against him from Friday.

But Australian captain John Newcombe has still given Hewitt free rein to
carry on as usual this week.

And the pony-tailed teen saw no reason to change the style which shot him to
Davis Cup stardom in the quarter and semifinals.

"That's the way I play my tennis and I'm not going to take a step back for
Cedric, or the crowd," Hewitt said.

"I'll do whatever it takes to get myself through, and get my team through."

Hewitt said he had learned the importance of blanking out a hostile crowd in
his Davis Cup debut in the quarterfinal in the USA.

"It's a lot tougher away from home, but I learned a lot in Boston about how
I've got to focus my emotions and my effort on my bench and my team-mates on
the side of the court," he said.

Newcombe backed his young colt to absorb the pressure in his own way.

"Lleyton's exactly how he is and what he is," Newcombe said. "He'll do the
appropriate thing.

"He's not going to be in anyone's face - he's going to do whatever he does
out there to get himself to play the best possible tennis he can.

"If people like that, they like it. If they don't, it's their prerogative."

Forget marvelled at Hewitt's energy, saying he was "like the little toys that
can go on forever" in battery advertisements, but cautioned that the South
Australian was now entering unknown territory.

"How the crowd will react to his behaviour, I don't know," Forget said.

"How he's going to react to a crowd who's against him, I don't know.

"It's his first time in a Davis Cup final, it's his first time with 10,000
people against him, it's best of five sets on clay.

"It's quite a new experience for him, and how he reacts to that nobody knows
- even he doesn't know."

Hewitt insisted, however, that the big occasion had not been thrust upon him
too early.

"I've learned a lot from the last two Cup ties, particularly (the semifinal)
against Russia, because there was so much pressure on," he said.

"So far I'm handling it a little better than in that one."

Forget also noted 23-year-old Philippoussis had failed to silence doubts
about his mental toughness.

"In the past he has shown he can be inconsistent, and even more so on clay,
against a crowd that's not on his side, and against players who are able to
eventually beat him or make life difficult for him," Forget said.

Philippoussis has a stronger winning percentage on clay at 60 per cent than
his French opponents, of whom Pioline has the best ratio at 56.4 per cent.
Philippoussis and Hewitt also hold leads in head-to-heads with Pioline and
Grosjean.

But the Melburnian's comment that he was pleasantly surprised to find the
Nice indoor court faster than expected drew more accusations of mind games
from Forget.

"It looks pretty slow to me," Forget said.

"Whether he's telling the truth now about the speed of the court I don't
know."

TEN: DOUBTS OVER GROSJEAN FOR DAVIS CUP FINAL
By Trevor Marshallsea

NICE, France, Dec 1 AAP - The Australian Davis Cup team was on alert today
for a late switch in the French outfit for this weekend's final amid
suspicions Fabrice Santoro would replace Sebastien Grosjean in the singles.

Australian captain John Newcombe noted Santoro, listed as a doubles player
this week, and France's nominated replacement Nicolas Escude had practiced
singles play yesterday, while Grosjean's leg was heavily strapped.

The practice schedule backed up speculation raised earlier this week that
Santoro would be brought in as a counter to the pace of Australia's Lleyton
Hewitt.

Asked if he would be surprised if Grosjean didn't play, Newcombe said: "No, I
wouldn't.

"You get the feeling maybe Grosjean might play and he may not play, and
they're getting who they're going to play if he doesn't play. He has got a
huge bandage on his leg."

Newcombe said the way Santoro and Escude practiced yesterday he suspected
that if Grosjean was to be replaced, it would be by 33rd-ranked Santoro
rather than 37th-ranked Escude.

"It looked to us as if Escude was a bit sacrificial, serving and volleying on
every ball," Newcombe said.

Earlier this week, French captain Guy Forget hinted he was considering
bringing in Santoro for 27th-ranked Grosjean to play singles alongside
13th-ranked Cedric Pioline.

"Hewitt is a great counter-puncher who feels confident against players who
can play quickly. I don't know what he would do about a guy like Fabrice,"
Forget told French newspaper L'Equippe.

Santoro has never played Hewitt before. He has played Australia's other
singles player Mark Philippoussis five times, with the Melburnian leading in
head-to-heads 3-2.

Hewitt beat Grosjean on the only occasion they played -- at Delray Beach this
year on clay, the surface to be used here this week.

Philippoussis also has a 1-0 winning record against Grosjean.

NICE, France, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Australian players preparing for the Davis
Cup final against France refused to undergo a drugs test on Wednesday because
of a misunderstanding over doping procedures, organisers said.

Two doctors went to the players' hotel for the tests, said Christian Dixin,
the official in charge of the organisation for this weekend's final.

``There are two elements in this case. There is an agreement between the
International Tennis Federation (ITF) and the French Sports Ministry about
doping tests stating that they should take place during the three days of
competition proper,'' he added.

``The Australians were aware of this agreement,'' he added.

``But there is also a deal between the French and Australian governements
which says that any athlete from either country can be random-tested at any
time in France or Australia.

``This is an agreement that the Australian team say they are unaware of.''

Australian captain John Newcombe confirmed the misunderstanding.

``Apparently, an agreement has existed since September between our two
countries, but we did not know about it. But I have no objection to the tests
taking place,'' he said.

``The ITF was also unaware of it which added to the problem. In tennis, we
play in many different countries and are not always aware of the different
rules,'' he added.

NICE, France, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Australian players preparing for the Davis
Cup final against France refused to undergo a drugs test on Wednesday until a
misunderstanding over doping procedures was sorted out, organisers said.

But after the rules were clarified they all underwent the tests later in the day.

Christian Dixin, the official in charge of the organisation for this
weekend's final, said the players thought they should be tested only during
the three days of competition under an International Tennis Federation (ITF)
agreement.

``The Australians were aware of this agreement,'' Dixin said.

``But there is also a deal between the French and Australian governements
which says that any athlete from either country can be random-tested at any
time in France or Australia.

``This is an agreement that the Australian team say they are unaware of.''

Australian captain John Newcombe confirmed the misunderstanding, but said he
had no objection to the tests being carried out.

``Apparently, an agreement has existed since September between our two
countries, but we did not know about it,'' he said.

Tennis-Woodies facing double trouble in Davis Cup

By Chrystel Boulet-Euchin
 

NICE, France, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Arguably the world's best tennis pairing over
the past decade, Australians Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge face double
trouble going into this weekend's Davis Cup final in France.

Not only have their French opponents Olivier Delaitre and Fabrice Santoro got
the better of them in their last two matches, but they must face them on clay
-- the Woodies' least favourite surface.

``We have lots of respect for them, they have been one of the best, or maybe
the best team in the world over the past ten years,'' said Santoro.

``They won everything... except the French Open,'' he added, stressing that
clay was not the Australians' best surface.

Delaitre, in fact, has beaten the Woodies on the last three occasions.

``I beat them with Fabrice in the quarter-finals in Cincinatti last season
and in the doubles Masters,'' he said.

``And I also beat them with (Indian) Leander Paes in Indianapolis,'' he
added.

Saturday's doubles match could again prove decisive. Since 1981 the team who
has won the doubles has won the cup.

Woodbridge and Woodforde have the best doubles record in the Davis Cup with
13 victories and just two losses and Woodforde says he does not really fear
the French.

``They beat us twice but each time we were far from our best. They're not
impressive physically and have some weaknesses, like all teams,'' he said.

``And their two victories against us will put pressure on them,'' he added.

But the French insist they can win, especially on clay.

``They play very neat tennis and they're excellent when balls bounce at hip
level,'' said Santoro.

``But on clay, balls bounce shoulder high. What's more important is that
their game plan is based on two or three rallies... if you make them play
longer, they become vulnerable.''

FRIDAY, DECEMBER 2ND 1999:

Forget's sly remarks sting Philippoussis
By LEO SCHLINK in Nice

AUSTRALIAN ace Mark Philippoussis is bristling over an assessment by French
captain Guy Forget that he is suspect on clay and is the weak link in the
Davis Cup tennis final starting tomorrow.

"Let's wait until Friday and see if I can change his mind," Philippoussis
angrily responded last night after being informed of Forget's comments. "I'm
ready to go and this court really suits me."

Forget is normally ultra-conservative in his approach to the game and his
remarkable comments are surprising given they have only proved to be a red
rag under the nose of Australia's most raging bull.

Philippoussis is one of the few men in international tennis with the
distinction of having won Tour events on every surface, including clay.

Told "the inefficiency of his game" was one of reasons Forget had chosen red
clay to be laid at the Palais des Expositions, Philippoussis smiled and said:
"We'll see."

"I'm feeling very comfortable out there on centre court. It's a beautiful
court and it seems like there is going to be a great atmosphere," the
Australian said.

Forget said Philippoussis "in the past has shown that he could be
inconsistent", a malady Forget expected was likely to be exacerbated by the
tensions of a Davis Cup final.

"It could be even more so on clay against a crowd that's not on his side
against players that are able to make life difficult for him," Forget said.

"But he's got that much talent and power that even on a slow clay court he
can still hit winners.

"But on clay you have to be patient. You can't hit winners off every ball.
Here after six or seven games, the balls are very humid and big. It is
impossible to hit winners.

"You have to work the points and be patient. I don't know if Mark can do
that. Pete Sampras is the best player in the world and he does a lot of
things better than Mark but the reason he has not been able to win the French
Open is that he has not had the patience."

Desperate not only to be part of the first winning Australian Davis Cup unit
since 1986, Philippoussis also wants to prove himself to his teammates who,
to a man, regard the Victorian as a rare talent but have had reason to
question his commitment to the cause.

Sensitive to the mood, Philippoussis has relentlessly driven himself as never
before in fitness drills and has spent hours on the practice court, such is
the depth of his ambition to help land the cup for Australia.

"I've been doing an incredible amount of work with (coach) Gavin Hopper in
Miami," Philippoussis said.

"I'm fitter than I've ever been and I'm moving as well as I ever have.

"I think it's going to pay a big toll for the match because this tie is going
to come down to fitness.

"I've done the hard work and now I'm ready to go."

Philippoussis's impressive condition has eased any concerns Newcombe might
have held over the comparatively late arrival of the US Open finalist, whose
eyes narrowed with conviction when confronted with Forget's comments.

Philippoussis's co-coach Pat Cash, hero of the 83 and 86 triumphs, believes
the strapping righthander is poised to explode on to the French "like a
freight train".

For his part, Philippoussis said the controversies of his troubled
relationships with team coach Tony Roche, Mark Woodforde and Newcombe were
officially dead.

"The skeletons were buried a while back," said Philippoussis.

POLLARD TO COMPLAIN TO GOVT OVER TESTING AGREEMENT
By Trevor Marshallsea

NICE, France, Dec 2 AAP - Tennis Australia intends to complain to the
governments of Australia and France over a bilateral drugs testing agreement
which caught the Aussies' Davis Cup final camp on the hop here yesterday.

Australian captain John Newcombe at first refused permission for two of his
team members to be tested by representatives from the French Ministry of
Sport, who turned up unannounced at a training session in Nice.

The two men said they were entitled to test two players at random from each
side under an agreement between the sports ministries of both countries.

While the French team agreed, Newcombe and Tennis Australia officials said
they knew nothing of the agreement, and it was only after confirmation of its
existence was received a few hours later that Newcombe acquiesced, with
Lleyton Hewitt and Mark Woodforde supplying urine samples.

Tennis Australia officials still insisted the tests would be invalid, saying
all testing linked to the final -- which starts on Friday -- should be done
by the International Tennis Federation.

And Tennis Australia president Geoff Pollard said he would complain to
Canberra and Paris, claiming his organisation was never told about the
agreement, signed in September.

"I think they (the two governments) have a responsibility to let all national
sporting bodies know what agreements they've entered into," Pollard said.

"You'd like to know under what sort of rules and conditions you are being
tested.

"It's a very odd set of circumstances."

The Australian camp said it would not respect the findings from the tests
conducted on Hewitt and Woodforde.

"Lleyton and Mark gave the samples, but we still consider the testing
invalid, since on site testing is up to the ITF," Tennis Australia
spokeswoman Lysette Shaw said.

"We don't know what they're testing for, or what their procedures are."

Newcombe said: "Apparently an agreement was signed between the two
governments in September, but we didn't know about it.

"If somebody just turns up asking to do a test like that, and you don't know
who they are, and the International Tennis Federation didn't know either,
that's a problem."

The identities of the French players sent for testing was not made public.

TEN: NEWK GETS SECRET TIP FROM EALES
By Trevor Marshallsea

NICE, France, Dec 2 AAP - Australian captain John Newcombe has revealed a
secret weapon in his bid to win the Davis Cup tennis final this weekend --
advice from the last man to captain an Australian side to a world title in a
final against France.

Wallaby skipper John Eales has come forward with a "top secret" fax to the
Aussie camp, fresh from his side's crushing defeat of France in the World Cup
final in Cardiff last month.

"John and the Wallabies imparted to us some information on how to beat the
French," said Newcombe, a broad grin spreading beneath his trademark
moustache.

"I'd tell you what it is, but we'd have to kill you."

Newcombe said the team was highly appreciative of the good wishes from the
Wallabies, which continues something of a "love in" between Australia's world
champions -- Steve Waugh's cricket side being another -- and the aspirants
assembled here.

"Steve sent us a fax in Brisbane before our semi-final against Russia,"
Newcombe said.

"We sent one to the Wallabies during the World Cup, and the cricket team
before they beat Pakistan, so it's becoming quite a thing."

Waugh also spurred the Wallabies on via fax during their World Cup campaign.

Victory for Newcombe's men would complete a glorious year for Australian
sport, which also included the netball world title.

His team insists they are feeling no extra pressure to emulate the deeds of
their compatriots, though admitting success over France -- the world soccer
champions -- would put them in illustrious company.

"To see the cricketers win was unbelievable, and the rugby was the same,"
said 18-year-old singles player Lleyton Hewitt.

"To be put in the same bracket as those guys would be a great honour.

"There may be pressure there in the public's eyes, but we're not worrying
about competing with other sports."

But when asked if he'd like a street parade similar to those afforded the
cricketers, the Wallabies and the netballers, Hewitt said: "It would be
fantastic."

TEN: FORGET PREDICTS "WAR ON THE COURT"
By Trevor Marshallsea

NICE, France, Dec 2 AAP - Gallic verve and passion versus Aussie pride and
power -- it's a recipe that has French captain Guy Forget telling fans to
brace themselves for one of the great Davis Cup tennis finals here from
tomorrow.

"It will be war on the court," Forget said as emotions began to rise for the
start of the tie.

Bookmakers may have Australia clear favourites, based on rankings and singles
head-to-heads, but Forget has vowed his players are prepared for the matches
of their lives as they chase a third Cup for the decade.

"Our players have a good chance. They are fit, they are highly motivated, and
they are really pumped up.

"We are going to make them (Australia) live hell from the first point to the
last.

"The public are also going to be behind us."

Forget has kept his nominated singles players Cedric Pioline and Sebastien
Grosjean away from the media during a low key build-up this week.

Speculation is rife he will replace Grosjean with doubles player Fabrice
Santoro, or even reserve Nicolas Escude. The answer will be known at today's
draw at 11.00pm (AEDT).

But whatever the composition of a team aiming to give France a ninth Davis
Cup -- putting them level with Britain in third place overall behind USA (31)
and Australia (26) -- Forget says his entire squad is ready and well prepared.

"Every player is aware of the fight to come. I'm sure the five of them will
be ready," he said, including Santoro's doubles partner Olivier Delaitre and
Escude.

"We're now very eager to start the weekend. It's very stressing to wait for
the match to start."

Forget said his side had worked hard on its the clay surface it chose for the
final, but that physical aspects were not the most important at this stage.

"What happens in the mind is what makes it difficult," he said.

Forget is banking on the paroachial 10,000-strong home crowd to give his team
an edge, while also acknowledging it was easier to play the Australians on
clay than any other surface.

"I know if we play to our best level we can come through a lot of problems,"
he said.

Santoro, who with Delaitre enjoys a 2-0 head-to-head doubles record against
Australia's Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge, said he was thrilled to be in
a final against Cup heavyweights such as Australia.

"It was like in the World Cup soccer final last year -- France-Brazil was
better than France-Croatia," he said.

"It's the same thing here against Australia on the 100th anniversary of the
Davis Cup. It motivates us a lot."

NICE, France, Dec 2 (Reuters) - Australia's first string
singles player Mark Philippoussis was drawn on Thursday to meet
Sebastien Grosjean in the opening singles of the Davis Cup final
on Friday.

Lleyton Hewitt will play French number one Cedric Pioline in
the second singles rubber of the tie later in the day. The final
is being played on an indoor clay court in Nice.

Pioline will play Philippoussis in a meeting of former U.S.
Open finalists in the first reverse singles on Sunday with
Hewitt closing the tie against Grosjean should it go to the
wire.

Australia's ''Woodies'' -- Mark Woodforde and Todd
Woodbridge -- meet French pair Fabrice Santoro and Olivier
Delaitre, who have beaten them in both their previous
encounters, in Saturday's potentially decisive doubles.

It looms as possibly the most pivotal moment of the Davis Cup Final: Cedric
Pioline v Lleyton Hewitt on day one of the Final has the potential to be a
blockbuster. And the stakes couldn't be higher. If Hewitt, as the No. 2
ranked Australian, can upstage French No. 1 Pioline in front of a hostile
crowd in Nice, Australia will have struck a massive psychological blow on the
opening day of the Tie.

Both players have been in sizzling form this year. Hewitt takes a 4-0 record
in his debut season into the Final; Pioline has won all of his five "live"
singles rubbers this season, including brilliant straight-sets wins over
Gustavo Kuerten and Fernando Meligeni in the quarters, and a key win over
Richard Krajicek in the first round.

Pioline and Hewitt have built up quite a history in the past year. It began
at the Australian Open in a night match on Centre Court. Hewitt, still full
of confidence after reaching the final in Adelaide and the quarter-finals in
Sydney, steamrolled the Frenchman 6-3, 6-1, 6-1. Hewitt hardly missed a ball
that night, and Pioline's body language revealed that he had run out of ideas
early in the match how to combat his youthful tormentor.

In their second meeting, Hewitt beat the former Wimbledon finalist 7-5, 6-4
on grass at Queen's. And in a dramatic third meeting on clay at the recent
Paris Indoor, Pioline secured his first victory over the 18-year-old 6-7,
6-3, 6-7. During that match the French crowd got stuck into Hewitt, who
normally thrives on pumping up a crowd in his own favor with his high-octane
gesticulations. But the experience is likely to be a great preparation ahead
of the Cup Final, where Pioline is certain to orchestrate the French crowd
against Hewitt again.

With the final line-ups for the Finals to be known later tonight, Australia
is eager to see whether French No. 2 Sebastien Grosjean, who has a leg
injury, will take his place. If not, either Nicolas Escude our Fabrice
Santoro are likely to get the nod. If Santoro is chosen, he will have to play
three consecutive days as he will anchor France's doubles team with Olivier
Delaitre against the Woodies on day two.

Friday December 3RD  1999 :

Cup captains open serving for final
By LINDA PEARCE, NICE
(Sports Today)

At the Brisbane semi-final two months ago it was Yevgeny Kafelnikov making
the bold predictions about the outcome of a Davis Cup tie against Australia.

In Nice two months later it is the usually more circumspect French captain
Guy Forget suggesting his players have little to fear from John Newcombe's
team.

As Australia's suspicions about a late French singles switch proved
unfounded, and Sebastien Grosjean was drawn to play Mark Philippoussis in
today's first singles, with Cedric Pioline to follow against Lleyton Hewitt,
Forget disputed the visitors' clear pre-tie favoritism over his own
well-prepared group.

``They have no reason to have any complex about Philippoussis and Hewitt,''
said Forget, who replaced dual cup-winning captain Yannick Noah this year.
``If we were meeting Sampras and Agassi you could say you had two absolute
monsters facing you. But this, I repeat, this is no Everest.

``If someone asked me to put $100 on Pioline-Philippoussis, or
Pioline-Hewitt, looking objectively at it, I'd put my money on Pioline every
time. I'm going into this tie with the clear conviction that we have the
edge. I just can't imagine Cedric or Sebastien being terrorised at the idea
of meeting the Australians.''

Perhaps not, but neither has a winning career record against Philippoussis or
Hewitt, the two Australians set to play singles in the centenary Davis Cup
final, starting today. While the home advantage is France's, victory may not
necessarily follow, with the visitors having won four of the past five finals.

Still, the French have a clay court, the balls of their choice and a partisan
crowd, and Forget is safely promising a warm reception. ``We are really
pumped up together,'' he said. ``We are going to make life hell from the
first point to the last, and the public are going to be behind us. It's going
to be war on the court.''

But Newcombe was equally confident. ``If we get behind 2-0, I think we can
still win. I don't think they can win if they're behind 2-0. That's why I
like our team a little better,'' he said.

The one common feature of the past 22 Davis Cup champions has been doubles
success. Not since 1977, when John Alexander and Phil Dent lost to Paolo
Bertolucci and Adriano Panatta but Australia still defeated Italy at White
City, has the third match been dropped but the trophy still won.

Hence the importance of tomorrow's match between Todd Woodbridge and Mark
Woodforde and Frenchmen Olivier Delaitre and Fabrice Santoro.

Earlier, a drug-testing issue flared before Newcombe agreed to a request for
Woodforde and Hewitt to submit urine samples to French Government
representatives acting under a bilateral agreement signed in September.

Hewitt has the buzz, but he's no bunny
By Linda Pearce, NICE
(Sports Today)

Lleyton Hewitt has fast become a favorite subject of Davis Cup week. French
captain Guy Forget likens him to the indefatigable Energiser bunny, even if
Cedric Pioline questions the effect of being so furiously, fist-clenchingly,
determined.

John Newcombe says he will simply do whatever it takes to win, popularly or
not. And Hewitt? He seems to care not a bit what anyone thinks.

"That's just the way I play my best tennis, and I'm not going to take a step
back for the French crowd or for Cedric at all,'' Hewitt said before practice
at the Palais des Expositions. "I'm going to go out there and I'm going to do
whatever it takes to get me through and get my team through.

"There's no doubt it's a lot tougher away from home, but I think I learnt a
lot from the Boston tie. I've got to focus all my emotions and all my effort
to my bench and to my teammates on the side of the court ... I've just got to
block out the whole French crowd and use it as a positive, not a negative.''

The last is a word Hewitt utters rarely. More typical is this Tuesday
statement to the media gathered in Nice for today's opening singles matches
in the Davis Cup final. And remember that the South Australian is 18, but
also that he is cocky, apparently nerveless and with a fine 4-0
representative record.

"I go out in every match and I believe I can't lose,'' Hewitt said. "I get
out there and I believe if I play my best then I believe I can win every
match. Some days the opponent's too good; that's sport, though. Certainly I
believe I've got the ability and I think I'm hitting the ball well enough to
win both my singles matches.''

That would be some effort, considering his first opponent will be Pioline,
the experienced world No.13. His second will be 27th-ranked Sebastien
Grosjean, in what could be a live fifth rubber that decides the tie. Hewitt's
debut efforts in Boston and follow-up against Russia were quite something,
but this, on such a big occasion and in such a hostile environment, would be
more spectacular still.

Pioline has wondered if Hewitt, whom he trails 1-2 in career meetings but
beat narrowly before a partisan Parisian crowd last month, can sustain his
emotion and motivation. But not Forget. "I think Hewitt's got this
unbelievable amount of energy. He seems like he's advertising for these
batteries, the little toys that can go on forever.

"I've never seen him being tired emotionally. How the crowd is going to react
to that behavior I don't know, because people think that he overdoes it. I
don't think so. I think he tries the best he can and that keeps him motivated.

"He's a very tough guy to play against because he runs every ball back, he
passes very well, he's got a great forehand, great backhand, he can be very
offensive, so he's a bit like Michael Chang when Chang was his age. The same
kind of player with a different way of emotionally showing what's going on,
but he's the same type of player so I think he'll be very hard to beat.''

Still, despite winning a title on green clay at Delray Beach in May, Hewitt's
senior experience on the European red dirt is limited. This year it started
and finished in the first round at Roland Garros with a five-set loss to
Martin Rodriguez.

This will also be his first Davis Cup final, although Forget agrees that age
is no barrier. Hewitt was barely five when Australia last won the Davis Cup,
on the back of Pat Cash's 1986 heroics against Sweden at Kooyong, but he has
seen the replay several times. He has also been indoctrinated with the cup
spirit for more than three years, and is a disciple as willing as Cash was
before him.

"My main achievements so far in my career have been the Davis Cup matches
I've won,'' Hewitt said.

AND NOW..FINALLY..THE ACTION Y'ALL...HERE WE GO....LET'S GET READY TO RUMBLEEEE!!!

ICE, France, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Australia took a 1-0 lead over France in the
Davis Cup final when Mark Philippoussis crushed Sebastien Grosjean 6-4 6-2
6-4 in Friday's opening singles.

The big-serving Australian dominated his younger opponent on the clay
surface chosen by the French to win in just under two hours on his first match
point.

``I'm extremely happy with how I played. I was solid today. I stayed
calm,'' Philippoussis said.

``This is what it (the Davis Cup) is all about,'' he said after enjoying
vociferous support from a large contingent of Australian fans in the 10,000
capacity crowd.

Philippousis, who used his booming first serve to great effect, broke his
opponent five times in the match while allowing Grosjean only one service
break in the opening set.

French captain Guy Forget had predicted that a tall and heavy player like
the world number 19 would have trouble on the indoor clay surface and tire
quickly, but the Australian was rarely in trouble.

Grosjean, playing in his first Davis Cup season, played limply and it was
the Frenchman who was forced to do all the running in the one-sided match.

Lleyton Hewitt plays France's Cedirc Pioline, ranked 13 in the world, in
the second singles. Australia have won the Cup 26 times and the French eight
times, including twice in the 1990s when they were underdogs.

NICE, France, Dec 3 (Reuters) - Cedric Pioline tamed Australian teenager
Lleyton Hewitt 7-6 (9-7) 7-6 (8-6) 7-5 to put France level at 1-1 in the
Davis Cup final on Friday.

Pioline won a superb exhibition of singles play lasting three hours 40
minutes on the indoor clay court, despite losing his nerve when 5-1 up in
the third set against an 18-year-old who never knew when he was beaten.

``He's a very good fighter, very quick. He's got courage,'' Pioline said.

Australia went 1-0 up when Mark Philippoussis crushed Sebastien Grosjean
6-4 6-2 6-4 in a one-sided rubber lasting just under two hours.

Pioline, 30 and the highest ranked player in the final, needed all his
Davis Cup experience to handle Hewitt, unbeaten in four matches in the
competition and going for his shots from the first game.

Hewitt took the Frenchman to tiebreaks in the first two sets, only to
squander set points when it came to the crunch.

Pioline went 4-0 and 5-1 up in the first tiebreak but let Hewitt off the
hook with the Australian coming back to 5-3 with a superb lob.

Hewitt saved three set points before serving himself for the set, only to
double fault. Pioline won it when Hewitt returned wide.

A service break for 5-5 helped Hewitt reach another tiebreak in the second
set in which another fine Pioline lob into the corner put the Frenchman 5-1
up.

But again Hewitt fought back with Pioline only securing the set with his
third set point.

Pioline, playing superbly at the net in the opening game of the third set,
pulled away with a break of serve to go 5-1 up as Hewitt's head dropped for
the first time.

But when he served for the match, Pioline was long on his first match
point. He then netted a return to give Hewitt the break for 5-2 and a glimpse of a
chance which the Australian took with both hands.

Hewitt broke again and drew level at 5-5.

Pioline, ranked 13 in the world, saved four break points in the 11th game
before regaining a vital lead at 6-5.

The Frenchman secured victory on the first of two match points when Hewitt
returned wide.

Pioline, 30, needed all the experience built up over 26 Cup singles to
handle the tenacious Hewitt, who was unbeaten in four Cup matches and went for his
shots from the start.

``It's the worst feeling I've ever had in tennis, losing a Davis Cup
match,'' the 18-year-old said.

``He's a very good fighter, very quick. He's got courage,'' Pioline said.

For Hewitt looks an almost certain winner against Grosjean if the match
goes to the final singles on Sunday. Philippoussis played conservatively,
keeping his powerful serve under wraps, but still had far too much for the
21-year-old Frenchman.

``If it comes down to my match on Sunday, I think I've learnt a lot today
about the pressure in a Davis Cup final,'' Hewitt said.

Australian captain John Newcombe said: ``Lleyton knows he could have played
better in the first 1-1/2 sets. But I think he's pretty confident if he has
to play the decider.''

Pioline won the first and second set tiebreaks, only after allowing Hewitt
to fight back from 5-1 down in both.

The Frenchman, who helped his country win the Davis Cup in 1996, dug deep
to tame Hewitt in a match full of squandered break points. Pioline converted
only six of his 15, Hewitt just three of his 13.

``I couldn't make the breakthrough, get that little bit of luck to turn the
match round, like the double fault serving for the set in the first
tiebreak,'' Hewitt said. ``I couldn't make the right shots on the big
points.''

It was Pioline's sixth victory in seven Davis Cup singles this year, having
lost only when France had already secured a 3-0 lead in the semifinal
against Belgium.

``(Pioline) played great, mixed it up well today. I think it came down to
his having played a Davis Cup final before. You can't buy experience,'' Hewitt
said.

Newcombe said: ``This is perfect for the Davis Cup, the match is poised at
1-1 ahead of what should be an unbelievable doubles match.''

Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge, one of the best doubles pairings of the
decade, are favourites to beat Fabrice Santoro and Olivier Delaitre even
though they have lost twice to the Frenchmen since last year.

Newcombe said Philippoussis had played almost perfectly and could beat
Pioline, ranked six places higher at 13 in the world, when they meet in the
first reverse singles on Sunday.

``He put Grosjean on the ropes and did not let go,'' Newcombe said. ``This
is the type of game Tony (Roche) and I feel Mark can play on clay.

``He has the shots to penetrate Cedric's game. I've seen him do it
before.''

Philippoussis believes the crushing win could sweep away the last traces of
bitterness that followed his decision not to play in a 1998 Cup tie against
Zimbabwe that Australia lost.

``I was out to prove how important the Davis Cup is to me because some
people doubted that,'' he said. ``There's nothing more important to an athlete
than to represent his country.''

``This is definitely one of my most important wins, maybe the most
important of my career,'' said Philippoussis who is his team's senior player in the
absence of injured Pat Rafter.

``Cedric's match was typical Davis Cup with both guys giving their best
with absolutely no limits,'' French captain Guy Forget said. ``Cedric was
getting frustrated in the third set but I told him to believe in the quality of his
game. He reacted and never gave up.''

Saturday December 4th 1999 :

NICE, France (AP) - Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge staged a brilliant
comeback to beat France's Fabrice Santoro and Olivier Delaitre on Saturday
and take Australia to within one victory of a Davis Cup final triumph.

The 2-6, 7-5, 6-2, 6-2 victory silenced French fans and gave Australia a
2-1 lead in the best-of-5 final.

Australia, playing its 44th final, goes for its 27th Cup championship
Sunday when Mark Philippoussis plays Cedric Pioline and Lleyton Hewitt faces
Sebastien Grosjean.

Woodforde and Woodbridge, now unbeaten in 11 Davis Cup matches spanning
five years, used all their experience to claw back into the match after the
French pair came to within just one point of taking a 2-0 lead.

``We came back from the dead,'' Woodbridge said. ``At 5-3 and a set down it
felt like we were two sets down. It was an incredible feeling to win from
where we were.''

``I hadn't missed a ball in practice by more than a foot and suddenly today
was missing by 10. But we started to settle and that was the key,'' he
added.

Both teams knew the importance of the match: ever since 1978 the winner of
the doubles match in the Davis Cup final has gone on to win the trophy.

Initially, the thunderous support that unnerved Grosjean on Friday only
served to inspire France's doubles team, who raced to a 4-0 first-set lead.
Santoro's deft lob to break Woodbridge's service indicated their early
dominance.

Santoro and Delaitre, a team that has won five doubles titles, looked
unstoppable taking the first set in just 38 minutes and moving to a 4-2
second-set lead.

In the fourth game of the second set, the crowd was brought to its feet
when Delaitre won a point with an instinctive volley played from behind his
back.

But the Aussies refused to buckle, saving four set points at 2-4 and a set
point when Santoro was serving for the second set at 5-4.

Suddenly France's volleying lost its sparkle.

The Woodies broke service again to take the second set before dominating
the third to the delight of the Australian fans decked out in green and gold.

Santoro's service faltered in the third game of the fourth set and despite
fervent home support, the visiting team eased to victory, winning 16 of the
last 20 games.

Woodforde sealed the 3 hour, 8-minute win with a smart high backhand volley
and the Australian camp immediately began celebrating.

``It is so satisfying because a lot of people thought we couldn't win
before and during the match. I have never seen Mark so emotional,'' Woodbridge
said.

Team captain John Newcombe was full of praise for his players.

``I haven't seen Mark react so fast for about four years. He was like a man
possessed,'' he said.

With Sandon Stolle playing in place of Woodbridge, Australia lost its
quarterfinal and semifinal Davis Cup doubles matches.

Santoro and Delaitre had won the two previous meetings against Woodforde
and Woodbridge, both last year, but Newcombe had no hesitation in reuniting the
experienced pair, five-time Wimbledon champions, twice winners at the U.S.
Open and Australia's most successful Davis Cup doubles pair with 13 wins.

The French captain said his team would come out fighting Sunday.

``Tonight I will tell the team that they have their backs to the wall,'' he
said. ``We will have to be aggressive and creative.''

``The team that won the doubles today put one hand on the cup,'' French
captain Guy Forget said.

SENSED DANGER

``I really sensed danger at 5-3 in the second set. They were starting to
play better and better. They improved from the moment Woodbridge won serve for
the first time,'' he said.

``(The French pair) did their best. I have nothing to complain about.''

Woodforde and Woodbridge took their Davis Cup tally to 14 wins and only two
defeats -- one in the 1993 final which they lost to Germany and the last in
1995 to a Russian pair.

The Australians were hesitant in the early games and quickly found
themselves 4-0 down as both had their first service games broken.

Another break of service, the result of two double faults by Woodbridge,
saw the much tighter French pair deservedly take the first set on their fourth
set point.

``Getting organised at the net and settling down was a major key,''
Woodbridge said.

Australia's captain John Newcombe said: ``Apart from the fact the French
were playing so well, the guys weren't making their first volley behind the
serve.

``Once they did, they had the French under pressure, but it was a set and a
half before we won a volley exchange at the net and I thought 'that can't
be right','' he said.

``I realised we were on the back foot and not moving forward.''

Australia began to turn the tide when Delaitre was broken in the 10th game
of the second set as they pulled back to 5-5.

The first break of service against Santoro two games later put the match
1-1 and the Australians never looked back after that, taking 16 of the last 20
games.

LOTS OF PRESSURE

``This has got to rate pretty highly measured against our past results with
Todd coming back in and us not having beaten these guys before. There was
lots of pressure,'' Woodforde said.

Newcombe refused to consider the final all but won, however, saying: ``I'm
not underestimating the atmosphere out there. There's no way the match is
over. The crowd are going to try to turn it round for France.

``Mark has not really been through it yet,'' he said of that kind of
pressure.

Mark Philippoussis, who meets French number one Cedric Pioline in Sunday's
critical first reverse singles, gave Australia their first point with a
comfortable three-set win over Sebastien Grosjean on Friday.

Pioline, who then put the match 1-1 with a thrilling and much tighter
three-set win over teenager Lleyton Hewitt, presents Philippoussis with a
much tougher obstacle.

An experienced Davis Cup campaigner with victory in the 1996 final under
his belt, Pioline saves some of his best tennis for the competition and manages
to pull the crowd behind him.

``The noise invades you,'' Newcombe said of the atmosphere at the 10,000
capacity court in Nice's Exhibition Centre.

``I tell the players they need to take it inside them and use it
positively.''

SUNDAY, DECEMBER 6TH 1999:

NICE, France, Dec 5 (Reuters) - Mark Philippoussis, at odds with
Australia's tennis establishment a year ago, was his nation's hero on Sunday as
he led them to their 27th Davis Cup crown.

``Yes, why not,'' he said, when asked if he thought he was a hero,
but he pointed out it was, above all, a team effort and a well-deserved
victory for Australia.

``I feel great and the whole team feels great. We've really felt, as a
team, we deserve it,'' he said.

The world No 19 crushed France's top player Cedric Pioline 6-3 5-7
6-1 6-2  to give Australia an unassailable 3-1 lead with one reverse singles
still to play between Lleyton Hewitt and Sebastien Grosjean.

Australia eventually won 3-2 after Grosjean took the last rubber
6-4 6-3.

``I've never concentrated or played as well as today. This is
definitely  the Best win of my life. It's the real start of my tennis career,''
Philippoussis said.

SUCCESS ON CRUCIAL POINTS

Pioline, who helped France win the Cup in 1996, said: ``He was very
solid from start to finish. He tried a lot of things and with lots of
success, especially on crucial points.

``I had to do more to force him into mistakes, but I wasn't able
to. He played a big, big match.

``He was maybe lucky at times with the net and the lines but he
deserved to win,'' Pioline, who has now lost all three of his matches against
Philippoussis, said.

Philippoussis, who gave Australia the first point with a three sets
win  over Grosjean in the opening singles on Friday, was his team's first
string singles player because Pat Rafter is injured.

Last year, the 23-year-old right hander from Melbourne refused to
play Davis Cup for Australia.

He was upset when Newcombe and assistant coach Tony Roche sat in
Rafter's camp during the all-Australian U.S. Open final which Rafter won.

``I've admitted in the past I made mistakes and said some things
that were wrong,'' he said on Sunday.

This year Rafter and Philippoussis teamed up in the first round
victory  over Zimbabwe before a knee injury to Philippoussis put him out of
Wimbledon and
out of Australia's Davis Cup quarter-final and semifinal.

``The guys did it in Boston,'' Philippoussis said of the
quarter-final victory over the United States. ``I was injured for Wimbledon... I
don't know if I could have won it but I'd take this over Wimbledon any time.''

WORLD CROWN

Australia, who last won in 1986, took their tally to 27 victories
in a year in which they have also taken the world crown in both rugby codes,
cricket and netball.

Only the United States have won the trophy more times, 31, in 87
finals  since the Davis Cup was created in 1900.

They came into the centennial final as slight favourites with
doubts as to how they would cope on the clay surface chosen by the French.

In the end, the Australians belied their traditional dislike for
the  surface as Hewitt gave Pioline a run for his money in three tight sets on
Friday and Mark Woodforde and Todd Woodbridge took Saturday's doubles in four
sets.

Newcombe said Philippoussis had shown he had the clay court game to
go on and win the French Open.

``I don't know, it took a lot out of me to win this match and to
win Roland Garros you need seven of these victories. I've just had two,''
Philippoussis said.

One thing this son of a Greek immigrant is sure to find in France
is something to celebrate the biggest moment of his career so far.

Asked if he would drink something stronger on Sunday night than the
water or orange juice of his changeovers during the match, he smiled: ``I
told the guys to go out and find me some Ouzo.''

SYDNEY, Dec 6 (Reuters) - Australia's Davis Cup champions will be honoured
with a series of ticker tape street parades in the country's main cities,
Tennis Australia said on Monday.

Following the trend set by Australia's world champion cricketers, rugby and
netball players, celebrations are being arranged for Melbourne, Sydney,
Adelaide and Brisbane.

Australia's players are sure to receive a heroes' homecoming after their
3-2 victory over France in the weekend's final in Nice.

The warmest welcome is likely to be reserved for Mark Philippoussis, the
big-hitting Melbourne player who put Davis Cup controversy behind him and
produced the best form of his career to win both his singles matches.

The team's victory was shown live on Australian television and dominated
Monday's television and radio broadcasts.

The Sydney-based Daily Telegraph's afternoon edition carried the news of
Australia's win on its front-page under the simple headline ``Our Cup.''

Philippoussis, who was vilified for his refusal to play for Australia last
year because of a dispute with team coach Tony Roche and non-playing
captain John Newcombe, was described as a national hero after beating French number
one Cedric Pioline in Sunday's reverse singles.

``Philippoussis shouldered his responsibilities with revealing maturity to
give Australia one of its greatest Cup moments,'' the paper said.

Prime Minister John Howard even interrupted Monday's parliamentary question
time to congratulate the team on Australia's 27th Davis Cup title.

``It's always been a great sporting talent of Australia, tennis, and the
epitome of tennis achievement is the Davis Cup,'' Howard said.

Heroes' welcome awaits Aussie Davis Cuppers
By Nichola Cooper

Australia's heroic Davis Cuppers will follow the lead of their fellow world
championship-winning colleagues and bask in ticker tape parades around the
country. With Australia's world championship cricketers, World Cup Rugby
heroes and netball world championships being feted in Australia's main
cities on their return from international triumphs, the Davis Cup team will enjoy
a similar welcome home following their 3-2 win over France in Nice.

Tennis Australia has already begun to plan the parades, which could take in
up to four cities: Melbourne, Sydney, Lleyton Hewitt’s home town of
Adelaide and Brisbane, site of Australia's semi-final win over Russia. Australia's
victory has been the lead story of news bulletins all day, and is certain
to be front-page news in tomorrow's morning newspapers, as it was in afternoon
editions earlier today.

Prime Minister John Howard brought a brief halt to question time in
Parliament to laud the team. "It's always been a great sporting talent of
Australia, tennis, and the epitome of tennis achievement is the Davis Cup,"
he said.

The hero of the victory, Mark Philippoussis, is staying on in Europe for a
few days to enjoy a snowboarding vacation.

Aussie stars may pick and choose their Ties in 2000
By Australian Tennis Magazine Editor Paul Macpherson

Australian captain John Newcombe is likely to come under pressure to relax
his attitude towards team commitment when Australia sets out to defend its
Davis Cup title next year. Throughout the six-year reign of Newcombe and
Tony Roche, Australian players have been required to make themselves available
for all Davis Cup Ties throughout the year to be welcomed into the team. The
policy has grated particularly with new Cup hero Mark Philippoussis, who
has not always declared himself available.

But a need for Newcombe and Roche to more carefully manage their playing
stocks and their determination to continue nurturing brilliant teenager
Lleyton Hewitt could see a shift in policy. If Australia required Pat
Rafter
and Philippoussis to play all Ties next season, Hewitt's exciting Davis Cup
career could stall. And it may be unwise to play Rafter in all Ties as he
attempts to avoid overworking his troublesome right shoulder. And
Philippoussis, who may wish to miss an early-round Tie, possibly against
Switzerland in Switzerland in the week after what is expected to be a long
and gruelling Australian Open campaign, could be cut some slack given his
commitment to Australia's victory over France in Nice.

With such a strong "No.3" player in Hewitt, it does not seem necessary to
insist that Rafter and Philippoussis - assuming they remain ahead of the
precocious teenager in the rankings - play together in the early rounds.
Indeed, the move to develop inexperienced Cuppers Hewitt, Sandon Stolle and
Wayne Arthurs this year played a crucial role in Australia's ultimate
success.

The Australians saw the value of nurturing great depth within their ranks
this season. The team began the year with its strongest line-up - Rafter
and Philippoussis in singles, the Woodies in doubles - but got progressively
weaker on paper in the quarter-finals and semi-finals. However, the team's
depth saw it win both Ties to advance to the Final, where it was still shy
of being at full strength, with dual US Open champion Rafter missing due to a
shoulder injury.

For the quarter-final Tie against the United States in Boston, Australia
lost Philippoussis to injury, with an untried 18-year-old Lleyton Hewitt brought
in for his debut. And the Woodies, who had been the backbone of the
Australian team for almost a decade, and who had won 10 consecutive Cup
matches as a team, did not take the court together. With Woodbridge citing
poor form and a crisis of confidence for his withdrawal, Sandon Stolle was
brought in to partner Woodforde.

In the semi-final against Russia on grass in Brisbane, Australia headed
into the Tie without its two highest-ranked singles players, and without its
five-time Wimbledon winning combination, the Woodies. But with Hewitt
manfully shouldering the burden of being Australia's stand-in No.1, and
28-year-old rookie left-hander Arthurs serving up a storm, the Australians
ran away with the Tie 4-1.

The other issue confronting Australia next year is which doubles
combination will replace the Woodies should Mark Woodforde act on his strong hint to
step down from national duties. With Todd Woodbridge expected to stay on,
selectors may look to pair him with Arthurs to achieve a preferred
right-hand left-hand combination.

Arthurs, along with regular Aussie partner Andrew Kratzmann, was the
best-performed Australian doubles player on clay this season, and finished
the year ranked in the Top 30. He demonstrated in Brisbane that he has the
nerve to succeed under Davis Cup pressure. And if he's in the starting
four-man team, he could be a handy singles back-up, particularly on grass,
if one of Australia's singles players suffers and injury and needs to be
replaced.

TEN: "TEAM SCUD" HOPES PUBLIC EMBRACE PHILIPPOUSSIS
By Trevor Marshallsea

NICE, France, Dec 6 AAP - Mark Philippoussis' father Nick and manager Tom
Ross said the young Melburnian's chequered Davis Cup past should be
forgotten following his starring role in the Davis Cup triumph.

Ross said he hoped the public would wholly embrace Philippoussis, while his
father insisted all the ups and downs of his Davis Cup past were now
buried.

"Now it's water under the bridge," said Greek-born Nick after his son had
wrapped up the final against France by beating Cedric Pioline in four sets,
to follow his straight sets win over Sebastien Grosjean on day one.

"He plays for his country, he plays for his team-mates and for every
Australian."

Philippoussis' relations with the Davis Cup establishment hit rock bottom
last year after his falling out with captain John Newcombe and coach Tony
Roche, when Philippoussis said the pair should have given him more support
when his father was diagnosed with cancer.

Philippoussis angered his team-mates by declaring himself unavailable for
last year's first round tie with Zimbabwe in Mildura and then turning up to
watch what turned out to be a debacle for the Aussies.

Ross said the Australian public may not have forgotten the controversies of
Philippoussis' career.

"But I think people appreciate his continued effort and dedication, and the
fact that he's young," he said.

"He's a sympathic figure in many ways, and I think people want to embrace
him, and I think we'll see that in Australia in January.

"I think this victory says a lot about his perseverance, after Mark's
dedication may not have been apparent early on.

"As Mark said himself, there were mistakes, some miscalculations, but at
the end of the day this was a well deserved result all the way round, for John
and Tony for sticking with him, for Mark to admit his mistakes of the past
and make the most of the opportunity here."

Nick Philippoussis said he was immensely proud of his son "not just now but
from the first day that he was born".

He said he had executed better in other matches, such as his straight sets
win over Pete Sampras at the 1996 Australian Open, but that he had "proved
himself a man" with his composure today.

"The way he conducted himself today under the pressure of a Davis Cup final
was fantastic," he said.

"Everyone can play tennis, but to play tennis like that in France, with
this crowd against you is fantastic."

NICE, France, Dec 6 (Reuters) - After Australia's first title of the 1990s,
John Newcombe's team is already looking forward to playing the only team with
a better Davis Cup record - the United States - in the first final of the new
millennium.

A 3-2 victory against the French at the weekend landed the Australians their
27th title despite Mark Philippoussis, their singles hero in Nice, and number
one Pat Rafter missing two of the four rounds.

But with John McEnroe taking over as captain of the American team, and Pete
Sampras and Andre Agassi rejoining the fold, the United States will
definitely be favourites next year even if Rafter is fit enough to play
alongside Philippoussis.

``For the last two weeks I've already been thinking about our defence of the
trophy next year,'' said Newcombe.

``In the first round we play Switzerland in Switzerland. If we win we should
play the other three matches at home with a possible final against the United
States.

``Perhaps Sampras and Agassi in Melbourne next December - that's something we
really want to experience.''

Team captain Newcombe played in a winning Australian team four times
including a 5-0 rout of the United States in Cleveland in 1973, but the
Americans still have a better Davis Cup record with 31 victories.

Newcombe and coach Tony Roche have breathed new life into the Australian team
and handled Philippoussis well after his acrimonious split with the team in
1998 which saw him ostracised by fellow Australians.

He played superbly in the final to beat Sebastien Grosjean and then Cedric
Pioline, the highest ranked player here, in the decisive singles on a clay
surface that was picked to exploit perceived weaknesses in the giant
Australian's game.

Teenager Lleyton Hewitt was the decisive factor in the semifinal win over
Russia but was taught a lesson by Pioline in how to play a five-set match in
his opening singles. But he remains Australia's great hope for the future.

France failed in their attempt to win a third title as underdogs in the
1990s. Their future is uncertain, as it was after their remarkable win over
the United States in Lyon in 1991 and their upset victory against Sweden in
Malmo in 1996.

They had to fight off relegation immediately after both triumphs and work
their way back to the top, but it is to their immense credit that they did so
without elite players.

``We're not world champions, French players don't win tournaments every
fortnight, and we don't have the world number two, three, four or five to
make up our team,'' captain Guy Forget said.

Pioline, world number 13, said he often felt all but alone in this season's
Davis Cup battles. His importance to the team was demonstrated by the
Philippoussis defeat being his first in a live rubber this year.

``It would be great if one or two players progressed and were stable at this
level so I had someone really solid to lean on, to make it easier,'' Pioline
said after his defeat.

Forget said: ``W all progressed together and we can still improve.'' But he
knows the next step could hardly be tougher with a first round match away in
Brazil on clay.

And of course..if you want to check out some other material..there's always the Official
Homepage of the Davis Cup: http://www.daviscup.org

Ok...here we go...first a little preview...

SYDNEY, Dec 28 (Reuters) - Wimbledon semifinalist Alexandra Stevenson will
replace injured Monica Seles in the U.S. team for the Hopman Cup next week,
organisers of the exhibition teams event said on Tuesday.

Tournament director Paul McNamee said former world number one Seles withdrew
because she had not recovered sufficiently from a fractured foot suffered
several months ago.

``It's disappointing when these things happen, especially so close to the
tournament,'' McNamee said in a statement.

``Stevenson is an exciting replacement and a real talent with a big future,''
he said.

Last year Stevenson, 19, became the first woman qualifier ever to reach the
semifinals of Wimbledon.

Justin Gimelstob has also withdrawn from the U.S. team with back spasms and
will be replaced by rising teenager James Blake.

The United States play Sweden in their first match on Monday before taking on
Belgium and South Africa in other group matches.

The Hopman Cup is one of a number of warm-up events before of the Australian
Open, the year's first grand slam event, which begins in Melbourne on January 17.

FORMER world champion Monica Seles is out of the Hopman Cup starting on
Saturday, amid rumors the multiple Grand Slam winner will miss the Australian
Open next month.

Seles is not ready to resume from a fracture in her right foot despite
receiving constant and intensive treatment since the left-hander withdrew
from the Chase Championships at Madison Square Gardens in New York last
month.

Hopman Cup tournament director Paul McNamee yesterday said he had been
stunned by news Seles would miss the Perth mixed teams event, in which she
had been due to partner Justin Gimelstob.

Gimelstob, coincidentally, also has succumbed to injury. The firebrand
right-hander yesterday received an epidural after suffering back spasms.

The pair will be replaced by Wimbledon semi-finalist Alexandra Stevenson and
rising young Boston baseliner James Blake.

"It's disappointing that this has happened," said McNamee, who had first
heard rumors of Seles' travails on Christmas Eve.

Former world No.1 Seles, whose loss to Martina Hingis at the Australian Open
semi-finals in January was her first defeat in seven Australian tournaments,
is also considered unlikely to accept a wildcard invitation to contest the
adidas International in Sydney in two weeks.

McNamee is still confident Seles will contest the Australian Open.

But if Seles was forced out of Perth and Sydney, and given her lack of
matchplay since the end of the season, the world No.6 would go into the
Australian Open desperately short of fitness.

Seles, who had won eight of nine majors and held the No.1 ranking for 178
weeks before her stabbing in Hamburg six years ago, has won four Australian
Open crowns.

The baseliner, who threatened to compile a record beyond the reach of her
contemporaries before the attack, has since waged a constant war against
injuries, weight problems and waning motivation.

Her father Karolj died last year, further debilitating Seles' desire to
practise and play. Seles last played the Hopman Cup in 1991, when she won the
event for the former Yugoslavia with Goran Prpic. She has since taken out US
citizenship.

Hyundai Hopman Cup 2000 Field Schedule

GROUP A
USA James Blake and Alexandra Stevenson
(4) South Africa  Wayne Ferreira and Amanda Coetzer
Belgium Xavier Malisse and Dominique Van Roost
Sweden Jonas Bjorkman and Asa Carlsson

GROUP B
(2) Australia Mark Philippoussis and Jelena Dokic
(3) Slovak Republic Karol Kucera and Henrieta Nagyova
Austria Stefan Koubek and Barbara Schett
Japan   Takao Suzuki and Ai Sugiyama
or Thailand Paradorn Srichaphan and Tamarine Tanasugarn

PERTH, Dec 31 (Reuters) - The first professional tennis tournament of the new
millennium, the Hopman Cup mixed team challenge, could see a rematch of last
year's battling Wimbledon qualifiers, Alexandra Stevenson and Jelena Dokic.

``If we get to the finals, I'd love to play her again,'' 45th-ranked
Stevenson said.

Stevenson, a last-minute replacement for Monica Seles, who withdrew from the
U.S. team because of a nagging foot injury, became the first qualifier to
advance to the Wimbledon semifinals after defeating Dokic 6-3 1-6 6-3 in the
quarterfinals.

The round robin format of the Hopman Cup starting on New Year's Day means the
Australian duo of Dokic and world number 19, Mark Philippoussis, last year's
winners, would only meet Stevenson and partner James Blake if both teams
reached the final on January 8.

Stevenson has a big asset in her strong serve, clocked recently at 190
kilometres (114 miles) per hour in Los Angeles.

Blake, a Harvard student, finished the 1999 U.S. Collegiate year ranked
number one. The 20-year-old replaces Justin Gimelstob, who also withdrew this
week because of an injury.

The slapdash U.S. team will first square off against 1999 runners up Jonas
Bjorkman and Asa Carlsson of Sweden.

The first challengers to the Australians will be either Japan or Thailand.

The 16-year-old Dokic, ranked 43 and attending high school by correspondence
to concentrate on reaching the top 20 this year, dropped her father as coach
in favour of tennis legend Tony Roche after the U.S. Open. So far her best
ranking has been 37.

Philippoussis, who returned to favour with Australian fans after leading his
country to a Davis Cup victory in 1999, is frequently compared with
compatriot Pat Rafter, ranked 16.

Rafter continues to nurse a sore shoulder and is regarded as an unlikely
singles starter at the Australian Open beginning January 17.

The Hopman Cup, one of a number of warm-up events before the the first Grand
Slam event of the New Year, will see the trial introduction of an automatic
two-minute rest at the end of each set and the elimination of the 90 second
rest period at the end of the first game of each set.

PERTH, Australia (Ticker) -- Teenager Jelena Dokic and Mark Philippoussis
look to lead Australia to its second consecutive title at the Hopman Cup,
which begins on Sunday.

A year ago at this event, Dokic made her first big splash on the WTA Tour,
notching wins over established stars such as Arantxa Sanchez Vicario,
Sandrine Testud, and Asa Carlsson.  Seven months later, she upset world No. 1
Martina Hingis in the first round of Wimbledon and reached the quarterfinals.

Philippoussis, who once walked out on the national squad, took part in three
winning teams for Australia -- winning here, the ATP Tour World Team
Championship in Dusseldorf, and the Davis Cup.

The hard-serving Philippoussis won two titles last season but had his season
interrupted by a knee injury suffered in his Wimbledon quarterfinal match
against eventual-winner Pete Sampras -- a match the 23-year-old was winning
before he was forced to retire.  He returned to action in October, just in
time to lead Australia to its 27th Davis Cup title over France.

Dokic and Philippoussis open against Thailand's Tamarine Tanasugarn and
Paradorn Srichaphan, who won a qualifyng tie against Japan today.  Tanasugarn
beat Ai Sugiyama, 6-1, 6-3, and Srichaphan got past Takao Suzuki, 6-3, 7-6
(7-2).

The Australians' task of repeating became easier when Monica Seles and Justin
Gimelstob of the United States dropped out due to injuries.  Their places
were taken by Alexandra Stevenson and James Blake.

Stevenson, who turned 19 last week, also made a name for herself at
Wimbledon, becoming the first female qualifier to reach the semifinals at the
All-England Club after defeating Dokic in a dramatic quarterfinal.  But she
also made headlines off the court after it was revealed that NBA Hall of
Famer Julius Erving was her father.

Blake, a 20-year-old Harvard student, finished last year No. 1 in the NCAA,
and after turning professional in July reached 219 on the ATP Tour rankings.

The Americans, who were relieved of the No. 1 seeding, meet unseeded Sweden
on Monday in a Group A tie. Stevenson will face Carlsson and Blake will
battle Jonas Bjorkman.

Fourth-seeded South Africa, comprised of Wayne Ferreira and Amanda Coetzer,
and the Belgian squad of Xavier Malisse and Dominique Van Roost fill out
Group A and will square off on Sunday.

Third seed and 1998 winners Slovak Republic, which is represented by Karol
Kucera and Henrieta Nagyova, and the Austrian team of Stefan Koubek and
Barbara Schett join Australia and Thailand make up Group B.

Each country plays three ties comprising of a men's singles and women's
singles match and a mixed doubles contest.

The Hopman Cup is one of several warm-up events before the Australian Open,
the first Grand Slam of the New Year.

PERTH, Australia, Jan 1 (Reuters) - Thailand  will meet home side Australia
in the Hopman Cup mixed team challenge after defeating Japan in a qualifying
round on Saturday.

Paradorn Srichaphan, ranked 106, faces Mark Philippoussis on Tuesday after he
defeated Takao Suzuki 6-3 7-6 (7-2).

Tamarine Tanasugarn meets Jelena Dokic after beating Ai Sugiyama 6-1 6-3.

Japan won the mixed doubles dead rubber 6-3 6-4.  Tanasugarn said she hoped
to draw support from Perth's formidable Thai community when she first
confronts 43rd-ranked Dokic in singles play and then Philippoussis in mixed
doubles.

Srichaphan, who has never played Philippoussis, said he expected to learn
from the world number 19. ``It's going to be a tough match,'' he said.

SUNDAY JANUARY 2ND 2000:

PERTH, Australia (Ticker) -- Amanda Coetzer and Wayne Ferreira helped
fourth-seeded South Africa dismantle Belgium and gain a round-robin victory
at the Hopman Cup, a mixed teams tennis tournament.

Coetzer, playing in her eighth consecutive Hopman Cup, needed just 70 minutes
to beat Dominique Van Roost, 6-4, 6-2.  Her countryman had an even easier
time in dispatching Xavier Malisse, dispatching the teenager, 6-2, 6-3, in
only 63 minutes.

The South African pair completed the Group A sweep with a 7-5, 6-3 triumph
over Van Roost and Malisse in the mixed doubles. They next take on Sweden's
Jonas Bjorkman and Asa Carlsson on Tuesday.

Teenager Jelena Dokic and Mark Philippoussis begin defense of Australia's
title on Tuesday against Japan.

A year ago at this event, Dokic made her first big splash on the WTA Tour,
notching wins over established stars such as Arantxa Sanchez Vicario,
Sandrine Testud, and Asa Carlsson.  Seven months later, she upset world No. 1
Martina Hingis in the first round of Wimbledon and reached the quarterfinals.

Philippoussis, who once walked out on the national squad, took part in three
winning teams for Australia -- winning here, the ATP Tour World Team
Championship in Dusseldorf, and the Davis Cup.

The hard-serving Philippoussis won two titles last season but had his season
interrupted by a knee injury suffered in his Wimbledon quarterfinal match
against eventual-winner Pete Sampras -- a match the 23-year-old was winning
before he was forced to retire.  He returned to action in October, just in
time to lead Australia to its 27th Davis Cup title over France.

The Hopman Cup is one of several warm-up events before the Australian Open,
the first Grand Slam of the New Year.

Coetzer played her typical brand of dogged tennis and said her short rest
after last November's WTA tour championship kept her fresh for the start of
2000 and the Australian summer.

``I spent December in South Africa to prepare myself for the heat,'' said the
world No.11.

``I didn't take much of a break after the championships and played some
exhibition matches in South Africa so I didn't take a long time off and I
prefer it that way.''

Van Roost's serve let her down, getting just 30 first serves in compared to
Coetzer's 40 and serving seven double faults compared to Coetzer's four.

Ferreira is back on court after an extended break after his wife gave birth
to their first child last September and he has tipped defending champion
Australia, represented again by Mark Philippoussis and Jelena Dokic, as the
big threat at this year's Hopman Cup.

``I played well and it is the first match after a long break,'' said Ferreira
who is playing his sixth Hopman Cup partnering Coetzer.

``Besides my serve I think everything else was good, I moved well but just
didn't get enough first serves in.''

Ferreira said he worked hard on the physical side of his game while he was
learning to change nappies.

``I feel strong and fit,'' he said.

``As far as singles goes here I think (Sweden's) Jonas Bjorkman will be my
toughest match but as far as the team goes Mark and Jelena who are in the
other group will be tough to beat at home.''

PERTH, Jan 2 (Reuters) - Jelena Dokic said on Sunday she
would relish a rematch with Alexandra Stevenson if Australia
and the United States both advance to the finals of the Hopman
Cup mixed team challenge.

Stevenson, a last-minute replacement for Monica Seles who
withdrew from the U.S. team because of a nagging foot injury,
became the first female qualifier to advance to the semi-finals
at Wimbledon after defeating Dokic 6-3 1-6 6-3 in the women's
quarterfinals.

"The only way it could happen would be the final and I
would love to play in the final. It is revenge time then and I
know what I have to do," Dokic said.

Dokic, ranked 43, admitted she had tired by the third set
against Stevenson at Wimbledon and that her serve had abandoned
her, but said that was all behind her now.

"If I play her again I'm pretty confident... I never lose to
anyone twice," she said.

Dokic said she had been working on her serve with tennis
legend Tony Roche after dropping her father as coach after the
U.S. Open

Dokic and compatriot Mark Philippoussis, the defending
champions, meet Paradorn Srichaphan and Tamarine Tanasugarn on
Tuesday.

Stevenson and partner James Blake, the U.S. 1999 Collegiate
number one, face Sweden's Asa Carlsson and Jonas Bjorkman on
Monday.

Stevenson earlier this week said she would "love to play
(Dokic) again."

The round robin format means Australia and the United
States meet in the final on January 8.

Philippoussis has shrugged off any suggestions he was under
pressure to win this popular warm-up event to the Australian
Grand Slam after leading the Australian Davis Cup team to
victory in 1999.

"I know what I have to do and I know how I have to play and
the way I played in the Davis Cup showed me what I can do,"
Philippoussis said.

MONDAY, JANUARY 3RD 2000:

Scud, Dokic say best yet to come
By PATRICK MILES
(The Australian)

ANOTHER day, another title defence for Australia, this time in Perth where
Mark Philippoussis and Jelena Dokic have a serious chance to be the first
team to retain the Hopman Cup in its 12th year of existence.

Their first matches in the round-robin format come tomorrow against the two
best players from Thailand – in fact, the only two players from Thailand –
Paradorn Srichaphan and Tamarine Tanasugarn, who defeated Japan on Saturday
to take up the eighth and final place in the tournament. Dokic faces
Tanasugarn, then the men meet, followed by the mixed doubles.

The defending champions are in Group B with Thailand, Slovakia and Austria,
while the United States, South Africa, Belgium and Sweden make up Group A.

The Australians' strongest challenge is likely to come from Slovakians Karol
Kucera and Henrieta Nagyova, who have both won five singles titles.

Philippoussis enters the new season with a perfect record in team events in
1999. A year ago in the Hopman Cup, he and Dokic beat the Swedish combination
of Jonas Bjorkman and Asa Carlsson to kick off a memorable year for both
players.

Philippoussis then joined forces with Pat Rafter and Sandon Stolle in
Dusseldorf last May to win the World Team Cup. He also provided the
foundation for victory in the Davis Cup against France in Nice in December.

Dokic, restricted as a 15-year-old to only a handful of WTA Tour events, made
her mark at Wimbledon when she beat the world No.1 Martina Hingis in the
first round.

She advanced to the quarter-finals before losing to Alexandra Stevenson, a
likely opponent in the final here on Saturday if Australia and the US win
their groups.

The Australian pair are hopeful of even greater success this year as they
enter their own personal periods of renaissance.

Philippoussis, 23, said after the Davis Cup final the victory signalled "the
beginning" of his career, while Dokic, at 16, is coming of age and will enjoy
a busier schedule.

She is, in fact, negotiating with the WTA to play more tournaments than a
16-year-old would normally be permitted to enter.

They both spoke yesterday of the positive elements they have brought with
them from the past season and their expectations for the new.

Philippoussis says he has a more mature attitude, while Dokic says she is in
strong form and raring to go.

"Finishing off last year as I did has made me want more success,"
Philippoussis said.

"I'm not feeling any pressure from people's expectations. I'm 23 – the
pressure was at the start a few years ago. I'm going to work harder and win
more."

He said the best part of winning the Davis Cup was the feeling he had when he
returned to Australia.

"I was back with my mum, my sister, my friends – I was so happy to be home,"
Philippoussis said. "Now I am in the best mental and physical shape of my
career."

Dokic said she was looking forward to playing more events this season,
although she will have to somehow circumvent the WTA rules designed to
protect young women from burning out.

"The rule is there to protect young players and it's not a bad thing but if
you're good enough, you should just play," she said.

She said her goal for the year was to break into the top 15 in the world
rankings and she has been working with Davis Cup coach Tony Roche to that
end, concentrating on her serve and her movement around the court.

"You've got to work on everything today – it's just so tough on the tour,"
Dokic said.

She is relishing the prospect of facing Stevenson in the final, saying she
had learned a valuable lesson when she lost to the American over two rainy
days at Wimbledon last year.

"I would love to play in the final against her," Dokic said. "I should have
beaten her at Wimbledon. I know what I did wrong and I never lose to anyone
twice."

Dokic stayed with her team-mate's Davis Cup struggle against France through
the night, watching on television in Sydney as Philippoussis provided the
inspiration. Now she is imbued with the same spirit.

Philippoussis became almost dewy-eyed when he tried to explain the
significance to him of playing in a team.

"You do everything together – breakfast, lunch, play golf, watch movies, tell
stories. And playing for your country, it's something that you dream about as
a kid," he said.

Team-mate Dokic remained silent about the prospect of a round of golf
followed by a screening of Armageddon back at the hotel, but definitely has
identified with the born-again Philippoussis as they start their new season
with infectious enthusiasm.

The Australian Men's Hardcourt Championship gets underway at Memorial Drive
in Adelaide today, with many of the world's top ranked players taking part.

Thomas Enqvist, Tim Henman, Magnus Norman and Dominik Hrbaty are all among
the top 20 players in the world, while the Australian contingent is lead by
Lleyton Hewitt, Andrew Ilie, Richard Fromberg and Jason Stoltenberg.

And two other crowd favourites, South Australian Mark Woodforde and his Davis
Cup doubles partner, Todd Woodbridge, have received wildcard entries.

Tournament director Colin Stubs says both are in the singles draw, and will
team up again in the doubles.

"There's a 16 pair doubles draw as well and I guess the Woodies will be
heading up that field and will be keen to," he said.

"They had a pretty ordinary year.

"This year's been a fairly ordinary one for them but they'll be very keen to
start the new year in good fashion and expect a good showing from them too."

PERTH, Jan 3 (Reuters) - A last-minute U.S. replacement team lost in straight
sets to Sweden in the Hopman Cup mixed team challenge singles matches on
Monday.

Alexandra Stevenson, who replaced an injured Monica Seles for the U.S., lost
to Asa Carlsson 6-4 6-4.

William Blake, a 20-year-old Harvard student and last year's Collegiate
number one, was defeated 6-3 7-5 by Jonas Bjorkman, ranked 74.

Stevenson showed little of the control that propelled her unexpectedly to
last year's semi-finals at Wimbledon.

``She was a little wild, her shots were going everywhere,'' Carlsson said.

The American looked dejected by the start of the second set at this popular
warm-up event for the Australian Open, at one point little more than tapping
the ball into the net on a weak first serve from Carlsson.

Carlsson, ranked 61, kept winning the big volleys with repeated attacks on
Stevenson's formidable backhand.

Stevenson appeared to get her second wind briefly in the second set, drawing
on her big serve to even the score 2-2.

However, at 4-4 the American started to rush her serve, providing Carlsson
with the advantage she needed to win the match.

James Blake who replaced Justin Gimelstob, also injured, at times appeared as
if he was playing on clay rather than a hardcourt, as he slid to meet the
more experienced Bjorkman's volleys.

The Swede had little difficulty in disposing of Blake, although he later
admitted a late lapse in concentration allowed the second set to reach 5-5
before he was able to regain his concentration.

After conceding an early break, the little-known Blake fought back with a
break of his own in the seventh game.

Under the round robin format, the Swedish team next meets South Africans
Amanda Coetzer and Wayne Ferrer. while the U.S. team faces Belgians Dominique
Van Roost and Xavier Malisse.

ASA Carlsson's drought-breaking singles win led Sweden to an easy victory in
their Hopman Cup round-robin clash against the United States today in Perth.

The Swedes won both singles rubbers in straight sets, Carlsson downing 1999
Wimbledon semi-finalist Alexandra Stevenson, and Jonas Bjorkman a comfortable
winner over college star James Blake.

Carlsson went into her clash with the higher-ranked Stevenson without a
singles win from her eight matches in three previous Hopman Cups.

The 24 year old had won just one set previously in singles – a tie-breaker
against Natalia Medvedeva in 1995 – but she had all the answers for the
erratic Stevenson, winning 6-4 6-4 in 78 minutes.

Having taken out the first set, Carlsson gained the crucial break of serve in
the ninth game of the second set for a 5-4 lead and then held serve
comfortably to take out the match.

She was understandably relieved to be finally on the winners' list.

"I knew if I could play well, I was always a chance to win in singles," she
said.

"It is good to win a match."

The telling statistic for Carlsson was that she hit the target with 80 of her
first serves, winning 59 of those points, while Stevenson only got 45 first
serves in for 22 points.

"My tactic was to serve well to keep her back," she said.

"She hits the ball very hard and I also tried to get the ball back a lot, I
think I did that well and today she made a lot of errors."

Sweden lost the final to Australia at last year's tournament and Carlsson
said she and Bjorkman were aiming even higher this year.

"This is a good start for us, maybe we can go one better," she said.

Bjorkman raced through the first set against the 20-year-old Blake, winning
6-3, but had more of a struggle on his hands in the second set.

After conceding an early break, the little-known Blake fought back with a
break of his own in the seventh game.

Games then went with serve until Bjorkman, who by his own admission was short
of match practice having not played since early November, broke again in the
12th game for a 7-5 win.

Bjorkman said he was delighted to have made a winning start to the year,
after a tough 1999 in which injuries and poor form saw his ranking slip to
74.

He said was confident of returning to the top 20 this year.

TUESDAY JANUARY 4TH 2000:

PERTH, Australia (AP) - Thailand claimed a stunning upset over defending
champion Australia at the Hopman Cup today, beating the host nation 2-1 in
the mixed teams tennis tournament.

Tamarine Tanasugarn outplayed 16-year-old Jelena Dokic 6-1, 6-4 to give
Thailand a 1-0 lead. Mark Philippoussis then leveled the series by beating
Paradorn Srichaphan 6-1, 6-4 before Thailand rallied in the deciding doubles
to win 3-6, 6-3, 6-4.

Tanasugarn allowed Dokic just three points on serve in the first set, then
overcame stubborn resistance by the Australian in the second.

Dokic had a chance to get back into contention when Tanasugarn stumbled in
the second set after taking a 4-1 lead. Dokic had two break points to even
the set at 5-5 with Tanasugarn serving, but the Thai woman held on to win the
set and the match.

Philippoussis, his confidence boosted by Australia's recent Davis Cup victory
over France, took an early lead against Srichaphan, breaking to lead 2-1
before taking the first set in just 20 minutes.

But even though the Thai offered more resistance in the second set,
Philippoussis was able to break serve at love in the final game to close out
the match.

In the doubles, Australia was let down by Dokic's serve, while Srichaphan
held his serve throughout and served his way out of trouble when facing a
break point in the final game.

The turning point came when Philippoussis was broken for the only time in the
match to allow Thailand to level at 3-3 in the second set.

``It was really incredible that we could break his serve. It was a miracle,''
Tanasugarn said. ``This is amazing. It's the biggest victory we've had for
Thailand. We had confidence that we would play our best, but not that we'd
win.''

Thailand, which qualified for the mixed team event by beating Japan on
Saturday, is hoping to repeat the success of the Slovak Republic two years
ago, when it won as a qualifier.

The round-robin event consists of two groups, and each team plays three times
to determine who will contest Saturday's final. Group A consists of South
Africa, the United States, Belgium and Sweden. Group B is made up of
Australia, the Slovak Republic, Austria and Thailand.

``This is probably the biggest victory that we've had for Thailand,'' said
Tamarine, who had opened with a 6-1 6-4 success over Dokic.

Paradorn, world ranked 105 and Tamarine, 72, seemed more comfortable with
each other than their Australian opponents, who had not teamed up since since
last year's event.

``We won today because we were enjoying the match and had nothing to lose,''
said Paradorn.

Philippoussis and Dokic can still retain their crown -- last year they came
back from a round-robin defeat by South Africa.

The match was beamed into Thailand live and Tanasugarn said it ranked as one
of the country's biggest tennis wins.

"This is amazing," she said.

"We were half-confident that we would play our best, but not really that we
would win.

"But I played my best and we played so well in the mixed doubles."

A disappointed Dokic was at a loss to explain her performance in both the
singles and mixed doubles.

"It has just been one of those really bad days," she said.

"It was my first match for a couple of months, so hopefully I can play much
better tomorrow."

TENN: SOUTH AFRICANS NOW FAVOURED FOR HOPMAN CUP
By Scott Coghlan

PERTH, Jan 4 AAP - The South African team of Amanda Coetzer and Wayne
Ferreira firmed into Hopman Cup favouritism with a convincing win over Sweden
in their round-robin tennis clash at the Burswood Dome today.

Both teams went into the tie with a win under their belts, but the South
Africans won both singles rubbers to move to the top of their group, which
also includes the United States and Belgium.

Provided South Africa beats the US when they meet on Thursday, it will
advance to the final for just the second time in eight visits to Perth.

With defending champion and pre-tournament favourite Australia beaten by rank
outsider Thailand earlier today and facing an uphill struggle just to make
the final, it is little wonder the South Africans feel they have a date with
destiny.

"We've tried hard the other years, but I think this year is our year," a
confident Ferreira said after his singles match.

Coetzer echoed Ferreira's thoughts.

"We are starting to look better and better all the time, but there is a long
way to go," she said.

Despite battling blisters on his hand, Ferreira continued his domination over
Jonas Bjorkman in the men's singles to close out the tie, winning 6-4 6-4.

The pair have now met eight times, with Bjorkman on the positive side of the
ledger just once.

Coetzer had to survive a spirited challenge from Asa Carlsson in the first
set of their match, but then took her game up a notch in the second set to
close it out in straight sets, 6-4 6-0.

Earlier in the day, Thailand recorded one of the great upsets in the 12 year
history of the Hopman Cup by beating defending champions Australia in their
round robin tie.

The Thai team of Paradorn Srichaphan and Tamarine Tanasugarn only won their
place in the eight team field by beating Japan in a qualifier last Saturday
and were quoted at 80-1 for the title a few days ago.

"This is probably the biggest victory that we have had for Thailand,"
Tanasugarn said.

"We were half-confident that we would play our best, but not really that we
would win.

"But I played my best and we played so well in the mixed doubles."

The Australians suffered an early setback when a listless Jelena Dokic was
beaten in straight sets by Tanasugarn in the women's singles, 6-1 6-4.

Mark Philippoussis levelled the tie with an impressive straight sets win over
Srichaphan by the same scoreline, setting up a deciding mixed doubles rubber.

The Australians looked to be cruising when they were up a set and a break in
the mixed doubles, but the Thais fought back to win in three sets, 3-6 6-3
6-4.

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 5TH 2000:

PERTH, Australia, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Belgium kept alive their hopes of a place
in the Hopman Cup final when they downed the young U.S. team in the second
round of the mixed teams event on Wednesday.

The Belgian pair of Dominique van Roost and Xavier Malisse beat Alexandra
Stevenson and William Blake 6-4 3-6 6-2 in the deciding mixed doubles rubber
to clinch the tie 2-1.

Stevenson, a surprise semifinalist at Wimbledon last year, earlier out-served
van Roost to win the opening women's singles match 6-4 1-6 6-4.

The tie turned on the mixed doubles after Malisse defeated Blake 7-6 (7-3)
3-6 6-3.

The result leaves the United States with no chance of making the final after
Stevenson and Blake were whitewashed by Sweden's Asa Carlsson and Jonas
Bjorkman in the first round on Monday.

Teenagers Stevenson and Blake were drafted into the U.S. team after the late
withdrawal through injury last week of former world number one Monica Seles
and Justin Gimelstob.

Defending champions Mark Philippoussis and Jelena Dokic of Australia, hoping
to keep their tournament hopes alive after a shock defeat by Thailand on
Tuesday, were due to meet Austria's Barbara Schett and Stefan Koubek later on
Wednesday.

Belgium's next opponents will be the Sweden.

PERTH, Jan 5 AAP - Sydney teenager Jelena Dokic twice climbed off the canvas
to upset Austria's world No.8 Barbara Schett in their Hopman Cup teams tennis
match at the Burswood Dome here tonight.

Thrashed in the first set and down a break in the final set, the 16-year-old
gave further proof of her enormous talent by rallying to record a win on a
par with any so far in her brief career, 1-6 6-2 7-5, and give Australia a
1-0 lead in the tie.

Dokic, thrashed in straight sets yesterday by Thailand's unheralded Tamarine
Tanasugarn, looked down and out when the powerfully built Schett virtually
blew her off the court in the first set.

After just 18 minutes, Schett had the first set safely in her keeping, with a
6-1 scoreline.

As a hushed crowd pondered events, a planned media conference for the
Yugoslavian-born Dokic following the game was hastily cancelled, the powers
that be obviously feeling she would be better left alone after what was
shaping as her second poor showing in as many days.

The 16-year-old looked nothing like the confident teenager who took the world
by storm at the same event last year when, as a virtual unknown, she beat the
highly-ranked Arantxa Sanchez-Vicario and Sandrine Testud in consecutive
matches as the Aussies won the event.

But a transformation came over Dokic and the match.

After both players held serve to open the second set, Dokic held again and
the broke Schett for a 3-1 lead.

Dokic held her serve twice more and then broke Schett again in the eighth
game to take the set, 6-2.

In a gripping last set that went for exactly an hour, Dokic broke early for a
2-0 lead, but then Schett reeled off four games in succession to grab the
momentum.

Dokic called for an injury time-out, with the trainer working on her lower
back.

She returned a different player again, winning the next three games and, at
5-4, had two match points on Schett's serve.

But Schett, who was growing increasingly frustrated by what she felt were
poor line calls, held on and levelled at 5-5 before Dokic held her serve
again.

Dokic earned a third set point in Schett's next service game and this time
she came up smiling, the Austrian pushing a forehand long.

"I think it was more mental than anything," Dokic said.

"I just made too many errors, I wasn't moving my feet, they just weren't
there, but it was good to regroup and come back.

"I still didn't play my best tennis, nowhere near it.

"It is good to win a tough three set match like this, especially against a
player like her."

Philippoussis says Dokic's shaky start had him nervous.

"I was a bit worried in the first set after 15 minutes but she came back
really well and should be really happy with the way she played," he said.

Philippoussis says that after losing the second set of his singles encounter,
he used the short break before the third to regain his composure.

"I lost concentration midway through the second set and lost eight straight
points," he said. "I wasn't moving my feet.

"But I think that's where those two minutes count."

THURSDAY, JANUARY 6TH 2000:

PERTH, Australia, Jan 6 (Reuters) - Thailand upset second seeds Slovakia 3-0
on Thursday to continue their giant-killing run at the Hopman Cup mixed team
tennis tournament.

Tamarine Tanasugarn and Paradorn Srichaphan, who beat top seeds and defending
champions Australia in a round-robin match on Tuesday, whitewashed Slovaks
Henrieta Nagyova and Karol Kucera after Nagyova suffered a lower back injury.

Tamarine and Paradorn, who had to qualify for the main draw, can cement a
place in the final if they beat Austria's Barbara Schett and Stefan Koubek on
Friday.

Tamarine was already in control when world number 34 Nagyova pulled out at
2-6 6-2 4-1 down.

Paradorn used a strong service game punctuated by nine aces to beat Kucera,
ranked 17 in the world, 4-6 7-6 (7-2) 6-2 to put Thailand on course for an
unlikely place in the final.

Kucera, the highest-ranked male player in the tournament at 17, served up 17
double faults against a consistent Paradorn.

The Slovaks defaulted the mixed doubles rubber because of Nagyova's injury to
hand Thailand a 3-0 victory.

Sweden's Asa Carlsson and Jonas Bjorkman meet Belgian duo Dominique Van Roost
and Xavier Malisse later on Thursday.

U.S. team of Alexandra Stevenson and James Blake, who have no chance to make
the final after losing to Sweden and Belgium, play South Africans Amanda
Coetzer and Wayne Ferreira.

``I felt confident to play him,'' said the 106th-ranked Srichiphan. ``Not
that I could beat him, but I had more confidence than against Mark
Philippoussis. That's why I could play well today. I just went out to enjoy
the match, and planned to try and keep my serve and break him one time.''

Because of Nagyova's injury, the Slovakia defaulted the mixed doubles, giving
Thailand a 3-0 victory. If the Slovakia is unable to play its final match of
the round-robin on Friday, Australia will instead face Japan, who lost the
qualifying round to Thailand.

The round-robin event consists of two groups, and each team plays three times
to determine who will contest Saturday's final. Group A contains South
Africa, the United States, Belgium and Sweden. Group B is made up of
Australia, the Slovakia, Austria and Thailand.