This is my last day in Nanaimo and it rained most of the day…..I did some chores and picked up a few last minute things and saw my first deer of this trip usually they are everywhere but not this time!!
I went past the restaurant where I worked for 14 years lots of happy memories!!
Spent most of the afternoon with Heather and we did a bit of shopping she is leaving with Zach tomorrow to go to Bellingham across the border in the States for Zach’s golf.
Heather and Kirby cooked a wonderful last meal and I like this great family photo…Mia is Ben’s lovely girlfriend!!
Thanks it was a wonderful meal and also thanks for being so kind to me not only this trip but for years…… I just feel like part of the family and it is a special and warm feeling.
While I remember a Happy Birthday to my great Nova Scotia lady…..Paula hope you had a great day!!
We all watched the hockey game tonight and now it is almost 11pm and I am all packed up…here is my itinerary….
I catch the 8.30am ferry in the morning to Vancouver and then the bus to the Mexican Consulate where I pick up my new visa then I will take a cab to Jackie's home this is where I stayed on Tuesday..leave my two very full suitcases there and then figure out how to catch a bus to the stadium where I have a reserved ticket to watch the two singles games listed below.
Milos Raonic has the body of an NBA point guard, without the shoulders that are requisite to handle the expectations of Canada’s Davis Cup entry. Comparatively, he could use the physique of Shaquille O’Neal.
He is the undisputed face of the program, a point as clear as the fact he must produce results from both his singles matches at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre this weekend in order for Canada to advance past Italy in their World Group tie and reach the semifinals for the first time in the modern era.
It is a burden that only became more pointed when Frank Dancevic, who shifted the first-round tie against Spain in Canada’s favour at UBC in February, suffered inflammation in his left knee at practice Wednesday and will be replaced in the No. 2 singles spot by Vasek Pospisil.
The 140th-ranked Vancouver player was already going to be busy playing doubles with Daniel Nestor Saturday, against Italy’s Daniele Bracciali and Paolo Lorenzi. Pospisil will now also open singles play today (1 p.m., Sportsnet Pacific) against 19th-ranked Andreas Seppi and may be needed to close out the tie against world No. 31 Fabio Fognini Sunday afternoon.
Jesse Levine was moved up to become a first-time Canadian alternate by captain Martin Laurendeau.
Still, for the program to maintain a bit of mainstream acceptance in his adopted homeland, it is up to Raonic to play according to his world No. 16 seeding.
If it is daunting it was not apparent as the weekend draw was confirmed Thursday.
“It’s a position we’ve never been (as a team) in but at the same time we train to play,” Raonic said. “It’s an individual sport in singles, or you play doubles. The lines aren’t different, the court’s not any different; you’ve got to play and play well.”
Dancevic concluded he wasn’t going to play well despite taking a cortisone shot that did not fully resolve his knee issue.
“If we have two healthy players behind, they’d say be honest with everybody and say I’m not ready,” Dancevic said.
Raonic, on the other hand, has observers believing he is ready to withstand the weight of anchoring Canada again.
“He thrives on it; that’s why he’s a top-15 player and why he’ll be top-10,” said Robert Bettauer a former Davis Cup team member in town to be an analyst for Sportsnet. “He looks forward to this. This isn’t a burden.
“I remember Roger Federer was once asked about the pressure of being No. 1 and being able to sustain it and he said, ‘I’ve got the best job in the world.’ It’s the same with Milos. You can hear him just saying, ‘I love being the go-to guy. If I don’t like that I’m in the wrong business.’”
Pospisil, who has a win over Seppi at last year’s Rogers Cup in Toronto — but was beaten by Fognini at an ATP event in Cincinnati — believes his past play can’t hurt his chances, but is realistic nonetheless.
“It’s a good chance to pull off an upset,” said Pospisil. “It doesn’t change my preparation. All it means is I have a little confidence going into the match.”
If Pospisil has confidence, Raonic is faced with juggling the weight of the country, however relative it may be to him.
“Pressure,” he said, “is out of our control.”
Will then catch the bus back to Jackie’s and spend the night..on Saturday I have another ticket for the tennis in the afternoon the doubles match and then will try and get a ticket to the Canucks hockey game and again go back to Jackie’s…..on Sunday at 4pm I fly back to Los Angles get my car and drive to Palm Springs where I am staying for 5 days to watch Ashley in her huge tennis tournament…..a sports nut me??? I don’t think so!!!
So my journey starts a new chapter tomorrow and I have really enjoyed my time here I am so lucky to have so many wonderful and special friends….
Yashi Koshi!!!
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