The match is indoors, on a hard, fast court where the ball takes an honest bounce.  No more of this muddled European soil.

Doubles is a critical point, and we have the number one team in the world, the Bryan brothers.  By they way, they are in the semis and going for the win.  (Someone should point this out to ESPN’s resident airhead Chris Fowler who endlessly recites the inaccuracy that there is only “one American man left in the draw.” )

The U.S. has never lost to Spain in the states, and holds a 5-4 record dating back to 1965.  Roddick’s hometown crowd will give the U.S. team a boost.  Texans know how to whoop it up.

And the big one — Rafael Nadal is taking the week off.  However, David Ferrer, Feliciano Lopez (who beat Roddick in the third round of Wimbledon), and Fernando Verdasco (whom Roddick beat in a Wimledon warmup) are coming and will make for tough competition.  Roddick and Fish, fresh off some big wins, will make up the U.S. team with the Bryans. Lineups were announced earlier this week. It’s too bad that Nadal won’t be there, but that’s par for the course in Davis Cup, where the real superstars often sit out.

</p>