Here are excerpts of several Davis Cup articles in today's
papers:

Monday 19 September 2005

http://www.lanacion.com.ar/740082

BRATISLAVA.-
On the second day of their practice sessions at the Sibamac
Arena National Tennis Centre, Gaudio, Nalbandian, Etlis and
Rodríguez indulged in a little easy football, just for the
exercise, with two members of their technical team: Claudio
Galasso the trainer. and Diego Rivas the kinesiologist.

"At first I thought the surface wasn't all that fast, but now
I feel it's pretty fast" said Nalbandian, the best Argentine
on fast surfaces and coming rival of Dominic Hrbaty on the
first day of the series.

Gaudio didn't carry out any intensive training due to a
stomach ailment. His activity was curtailed to just exercizing
in the hotel gym accompanied by his coach, Franco Davin, who
was captain of the Argentine team between 1999 and 2001.
…………………………………..

http://www.lanacion.com.ar/740020

The Argentine team, with Nalbandian, Puerta, Gaudio and the
captain Alberto Mancini, have already installed their base
camp at the Danube Hotel, which will also be occupied by the
Slovak team.

Playing at home the Slovaks have only lost four times, three
of which were against the powerful teams of the US, Russia
and Sweden.

Setting aside their disagreements which are public knowledge
and have more than once brought about clashes, Coria and Gaudio
have resolved to draw the cart in the same direction; nobody
can ask them to be friends, but it is a positive sign that
they are showing this maturity for a peaceful coexistence
within the group.

……………………………


http://www.clarin.com/diario/2005/09/19/deportes/d-02501.htm

"It's fast and it's going to be fast", says Nalbandian after
over two hours training, describing the red court…...…, a court
where the ball advances at astonishing speed, a higher speed
than that of the majority of tennis courts.

Alberto Mancini: "At first you might not think so, but when you
start to play points you realize that it's a very fast surface.
Not quite as much as when Argentina had to play the Davis Cup
against Belarus, but really fast anyway"

Puerta and Nalbandian, the doubles team that Mancini has chosen
for a second time, offer a spectacle worth seeing as they play
against the experienced pair Gastón Etlis and Martín Rodríquez.
Two things are captivating: first, the intensity of the game;
second, the general good humour. Between the four of them they
achieve something that is usually absent in high competition:
they play all out and they laugh all out. For a while Gastón
Gaudio is also part of that combination of fun and effort. But
it's only for a while because Gaudio can only carry out a little
football and a little tennis before having to leave because of
some digestive problems, accompanied by his coach Franco Davin.
His early departure doesn't allow Gaudio to know what Karol,
another of the few curious spectators watching the Argentines'
activity, thinks of him: "Gaudio's tennis is extraordinary".