Music: {allcanada} Nestor to play with Pospisil at London Olympics

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

{allcanada} Nestor to play with Pospisil at London Olympics

PARIS -- Daniel Nestor will be competing in the men's doubles tennis event at this summer's London Olympic with Vancouver's Vasek Pospisil.

There had been speculation about whether his partner would be Pospisil or Canada's top-ranking singles player, Milos Raonic of Thornhill, Ont.

The decision, which hasn't been officially announced, was made several weeks ago and Raonic has been informed.

A significant reason for choosing Pospisil over Raonic was that the latter will be competing in the singles event and might not be able to give as strong a commitment to doubles as Pospisil.

Pospisil partnered with Nestor for two victories in Davis Cup in 2011. They defeated an unheralded Ecuadorian pair in Guayquil in July and then won impressively over the experienced team of Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram of Israel in a match played near Tel Aviv last September. That four-set win helped vault Canada into the World Group level of the competition in 2012.

Raonic has played with Nestor on two previous occasions in Davis Cup, winning over Juan Sebastian Cabal and Alejandro Falla in Colombia in 2010 and then losing this past February in Vancouver to Julien Benneteau and Michael Llodra of France.

Nestor currently ranks co-No. 1 in the ATP individual doubles rankings with his partner Max Mirnyi of Belarus. As a top-10 player he has the right, under Olympic tennis competition rules, to select any player from his country who is in good standing with the International Tennis Federation.

Pospisil is No. 203 in the doubles rankings while Raonic, currently No. 22 in singles, is No. 262.

The Olympic doubles event runs from July 28 to Aug. 4 and will be held on the grass courts at the All England Club in Wimbledon.