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Moodie Preparing Henman For Final
Bow
Wesley Moodie is helping to
prepare Tim Henman and the rest of
the Great Britain Davis Cup team for
their clash with Croatia at
Wimbledon this weekend.
 Moodie,
who reached a career-high ranking of
No.57 two years ago, has been
drafted in as a hitting partner to
help Britain prepare for the clash.
“I’ve enjoyed Davis Cup in the past
because as a pro player you rarely
get to play on a team,” said Moodie.
“It’s been a little strange this
time because I’m part of a different
team and have a different flag on my
shirt! But I don't get to practice
in this environment often and
practicing at Wimbledon has also
been enjoyable.”
He joined the MCTA in June and is
looking to break into the Top 50 for
the first time and to help the
Academy’s younger members, including
Fitzpatrick.
Like Britain’s primary opponents
Ivan Ljubicic and Marin Cilic,
Moodie is a big-serving right-hander
with an attacking philosophy. The
arrangement forms part of a deal
between the LTA and the Monte Carlo
Tennis Academy (MCTA). British
18-year-old Anna Fitzpatrick, who
reached the Wimbledon junior
semifinals in July, is also a member
of the MCTA.
“I’ve hit with Tim and he seems to
be playing well,” said the
28-year-old Moodie from Durban in
South Africa.
“I’ve been quite impressed with him
- he's not taking any short cuts.
His third child has just been born
and he is practicing hard, doing his
exercise in the gym and doing his
regular treatment and stretching
before and after every practice. I
think it would be quite easy for him
to just practice and not do anything
more because he knows that this is
his last match, but he isn’t taking
any short cuts.”
Moodie has yet to practice with Andy
Murray, but he has hit with Jamie
Murray and Jamie Baker, and reports
that spirit among the team is good.
“I haven’t hit with Andy yet,
although he looks like he is
striking the ball very well as
usual,” he said. “They are a fun
bunch of guys to be around - Tim
always keeps everyone on their toes
with his quick wit and comments.
Everyone seems to enjoy each other’s
company. The courts are marginally
quicker than what we are used to at
Wimbledon, but it’s still the same
balls so probably won't be
noticeably different during the
tie.”
The MCTA is the world’s first
Touring academy, with the mission to
find the world’s most talented young
players and develop them into Top
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