Latest news from Loughborough University
| 12 February 2008 | PR 08/16 |
Loughborough’s Baker halts Argentina’s Davis Cup whitewash
Loughborough tennis player Jamie Baker denied Argentina a clean sweep of last weekend’s Davis Cup tie with a thrilling victory over home favourite Agustin Calleri.
The 21-year-old, who is based at Loughborough University's LTA High Performance Centre, became the only Brit to clock up a victory against a strong Argentinean side and in the process prevented the 2006 finalists taking their 10th successive 5-0 victory at a home Davis Cup.
Ranked 235 in the world and third in Britain, Baker’s 7-6, 6-4 win over clay court specialist Calleri, who is ranked 41st, denied Argentina the clean sweep and earned him a standing ovation from the home crowd.
“I can’t believe I’ve beaten a top 50 player on clay in his home country,” he said. “I’d just like to thank John Lloyd for being an excellent captain - I couldn’t ask for a better person to have in my corner.”
Loughborough University Director of Tennis Dr Chris Harwood was delighted with Baker’s performance.
“Jamie showed real determination to beat Calleri and the fact he received a standing ovation from the Argentinean crowd is a tremendous show of respect. He grew in confidence during his earlier match against Nalbandian and he took that into the match against Calleri, who was apparently unbeaten at home in Davis Cup singles,” said Harwood.
“His performance is a credit to the Loughborough LTA High Performance Centre and is testament to the support programme we have in place.”
Great Britain will now face a World Group play-off in September, while Argentina will host Sweden in a quarter-final tie in April.
ENDS
For all media enquiries contact:
- Amanda Overend, Sports PR Officer, Loughborough University,
T: 01509 228686, E: A.J.Overend@lboro.ac.uk
Notes for editors:
- For more information log onto http://www.daviscup.com
- The LTA High Performance Centre based at Loughborough University runs in conjunction with local education institutions and is designed to maximise the development of talented young players and help them realise their full potential in Tennis. This is one of the most important centres for junior tennis development in the Country.
- Loughborough is one of the country’s leading
universities, with an international reputation for excellence in teaching
and research, strong links with industry and unrivalled sporting achievement.
It is a member of the esteemed 1994 Group – a set of internationally recognised, research intensive universities – and has a reputation for the relevance of its work. Its degree programmes are highly regarded by professional institutions and businesses, and its graduates are consistently targeted by the UK’s top recruiters.
Loughborough is also the UK’s premier university for sport. It has perhaps the best integrated sports development environment in the world and is home to some of the country’s leading coaches, sports scientists and support staff. It also has the country’s largest concentration of world-class training facilities across a wide range of sports.
In the 2007 National Student Survey, the University was voted fourth in the UK, with 23 out of 29 of Loughborough’s subject areas being ranked in the top ten for overall satisfaction. Loughborough is also ranked in the top fifteen of UK universities in national league tables. It was named winner of the 2006 and 2007 Times Higher award for the UK’s Best Student Experience and winner of the 2007 award for Outstanding Support for Overseas Students. In recognition of its contribution to the sector, the University has been awarded six Queen's Anniversary Prizes – an achievement bettered by no other university.