Coach backing doubles pairings to impress at Wimbledon 2015

30 June 2015

Team Bath MCTA Tennis Head Coach David Sammel believes Anna Smith, Jocelyn Rae and Marcus Daniell can all make an impact in the doubles competitions at Wimbledon.

Smith and Rae – Britain’s Federation Cup pairing – will start their ladies’ doubles campaign at SW19 against Canada’s Eugenie Bouchard and Lesia Tsurenko of Ukraine.

And there will be a Team Bath presence in the men’s doubles after Daniell – who made his Grand Slam debut at the French Open last month – and partner Marcelo Demoliner were awarded a lucky losers’ place in the draw.

They had lost 6-4 7-6 to Sergey Betov and Alexander Bury of Belarus in the final match of qualifying but were handed a reprieve and will now face Robin Haase of the Netherlands and France’s Benoit Paire in the first round on Wednesday.

Sammel is working with both doubles partnerships at Wimbledon and said they are looking in good shape.

“All is going well in practice and both pairings are coming into the tournament in good form,” he said.

“Both have shown in the past few weeks that they can play at a very high level and their world rankings of 72nd [Smith and Rae] and 74th [Daniell] reflect that.

“Bouchard and Tsurenko will be obviously be a difficult test for Anna and Jocelyn but I am quietly confident that they can do the job.

“Marcus and Marcelo have also come here on the back of some great performances, so I am hopeful we can get a result there as well.”

Sammel has been touring with Kiwi Daniell and Brazilian Demoliner in recent weeks and was quick to praise the work of his fellow Team Bath MCTA coaches with Smith and Rae.

“I think Ian Macdonald has done a fabulous job with the girls, as has [head of strength and conditioning] Bob Smith,” he added.

“Physical training is such an important part of the game and Bob has got them really motoring along.”

Sammel was also full of praise for Liam Broady, who became the first Brit to win at Wimbledon 2015 when he beat Australia’s Marinko Matosevic 5-7 4-6 6-3 6-2 6-3 on his Grand Slam debut.

Broady and his long-term coach Mark Hilton have been working with Sammel in recent months, during which time the Brit has risen from 346th to 174th in the world rankings.

“To win your first match at Wimbledon is always a significant achievement and Liam did fabulously well,” Sammel said.

“Nerves play a big part but he handled it brilliantly and it is such a dream come true for him.”

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