By JEREMY LASTpeer shouts 224.88(photo credit: AP)
So what now for Israeli tennis?
In March of next year, Israel's Davis Cup team will play a World Group first-round tie for the second consecutive year with the clear aim of at least advancing to the quarterfinals and guaranteeing its place in the elite 16.
It won't be easy and much will depend on Tuesday's draw. In the press conference at Ramat Hasharon yesterday, Dudi Sela discussed the potential opponents with the journalists present, concluding that Germany at home would be the best possible tie.
Both Sela and the Peruvian player he defeated on Sunday, Luis Horna, agreed that if the draw goes well for Israel, Eyal Ran's team could advance to the quarters or even the semis.
Horna went as far as saying that Israel is a "great team".
"I think Dudi Sela is a growing player and he will soon be in the top 50," he said of the world number 91 who has held a ranking as high as 57.
"They have one of the world's top doubles teams which almost guarantees them one point," Horna added in reference to Israel's Andy Ram and Yoni Erlich.
But while there is indeed a chance of Israel at least winning next year's first round tie, the long term future for Israeli tennis looks far bleaker.
Ram and Erlich may be one of the best doubles partnerships around, but on the singles front Sela is the only Israeli player with any real prospects.
Harel Levy and Noam Okun performed admirably this past weekend, but they are getting older and there isn't anyone waiting in the wings to replace them.
Both Levy and Okun are 30 years old and will soon have to retire from the pressure cooker of Davis Cup tennis, leaving Israel without a second or third singles player.
Usually in the case of a dead rubber, where the tie is already won, the captain gives a young player the chance to gain some invaluable experience. But yesterday there wasn't even anyone good enough to take another spot on the team and so Okun played, and won.
The next-highest ranked Israeli youngster is 22-year-old Amir Weintraub who is currently number 478, far lower than Levy at 190, although higher than Okun at 512.
The same is the case on the women's side.
Shahar Pe'er may be an Israeli superstar, despite her recent drop in form, but with 35-year-old Tzipi Obziler's inevitable retirement likely to come about sooner rather than later, the next best Israeli singles player is Julia Glushko who is 396th the world.
While the facilities at Israel's tennis centers are more than adequate, most people involved in tennis here still agree on the reason for the lack of prospects.
Speaking to The Jerusalem Post before heading home on Sunday, both Okun and Sela blamed the lack of quality ranking tournaments in Israel.
"There's just no tournaments here," Okun said.
Unlike in countries such as France, Ukraine, Spain and the US, the Israeli Tennis Association does not put enough money into running tournaments at home to give Israelis the chance to play and win ranking points. As a case in point, only one challenger was held this year.
Success in international tennis can be just as important to our nation as a strong soccer or basketball team, as has been seen before when Israel played significant home ties in the Davis Cup against Chile or in the Fed Cup against Russia in front of packed houses.
But unless the ITA rethinks its strategy, Sela and Pe'er could be the last in the current generation of Israeli tennis stars and Israel will once again sink into the lower ranks of tennis also-rans.
jeremylast@gmail.com
if(catID != 151){
var cont = `Take Israel home with the new Jerusalem Post Store
