Anderson to lead Capitals in WTT playoffs

The Sacramento Capitals' Kevin Anderson, a 6-foot-8
South African, is ranked 34th in the world in singles.
Photo by Paul Bauman

   Kevin Anderson will lead the Sacramento Capitals in the World TeamTennis playoffs next month in Charleston, S.C., league officials announced Thursday.
   Sacramento (7-7) will face the rival Orange County Breakers (8-6), led by former world No. 1 and ex-Capital Lindsay Davenport, on Sept. 14 in the Western Conference finals. Orange County won three of four matches against Sacramento in the regular season.
   The defending champion Washington Kastles (14-0), with Venus Williams, will take on the New York Sportimes (9-5), featuring John McEnroe, on Sept. 15 in the Eastern Conference finals. Washington has won 30 consecutive matches, the second-longest winning streak by a U.S. team in history behind the Los Angeles Lakers' 33 straight in 1971-72.
   The conference champions will meet Sept. 16 in the WTT Finals.
   Anderson, a 6-foot-8 South African, is ranked 34th in the world in singles. As a 26-year-old WTT rookie, he played the last four matches of the regular season for the Capitals and won 15 of 33 singles games (.455). That was not enough to qualify among WTT regular players.
   Anderson lost both of his singles sets to Orange County's John-Patrick Smith, the WTT Male Rookie of the Year.   
   Capitals coach Wayne Bryan wrote in an e-mail during the season that Sam Querrey, rather than Anderson, would compete for the team in the playoffs. Querrey finished second in the league in men's singles, behind Washington's Bobby Reynolds, with a .580 winning percentage in six matches.     
   Also playing for Sacramento will be 40-year-old Mark Knowles, formerly No. 1 in the world in men's doubles, Yasmin Schnack and Asia Muhammad. 
   In the eight-team league, the Capitals finished third in men's singles (.552), fourth in men's doubles (.518) and fourth in mixed doubles (.532). They placed fifth in women's singles (.485), boosted by part-time player CoCo Vandeweghe (12-8, .600), and seventh in women's doubles (.429).

TV SCHEDULE  

(All times PDT)

   Today -- Cincinnati (men and women), quarterfinals, ESPN2, 8 a.m.-2 p.m. (live), 4-6 p.m. (live).
   Saturday -- Cincinnati (men and women), semifinals, ESPN2, 10 a.m.-2 p.m. (live), 4-8 p.m. (live).
   Sunday -- Cincinnati, men's final, CBS, 9:30 a.m.-noon (live), women's final, ESPN2, 1-3 p.m. (live).

CALENDAR

   Aug. 27-Sept. 9 -- U.S. OPEN, Flushing Meadows, N.Y., www.usopen.org.
   Sept. 9-16 -- $25,000 USTA Oak River Rehab Challenger, Sun Oaks Tennis & Fitness, 3452 Argyle Road, Redding, Calif., 96002, www.sunoakschallenger.com, (530) 227-3498.
   Sept. 14 -- World TeamTennis, Western Conference finals, Sacramento Capitals vs. Orange County Breakers, 3:30 p.m. PDT, Charleston, S.C.
   Sept. 15 -- WTT, Eastern Conference finals, Washington Kastles vs. New York Sportimes, 3:30 p.m. PDT, Charleston, S.C.
   Sept. 16 -- WTT Finals, Western Conference champion vs. Eastern Conference champion, 12:30 p.m. PDT, Charleston, S.C.
   Sept. 29-Oct. 7 -- Natomas Men's $100,000 Challenger, Natomas Racquet Club, 2450 Natomas Park Drive, Sacramento, Calif., 95833, www.natomaschallenger.com, (916) 649-0909.
   Oct. 6-14 -- First Republic Bank Men's $100,000 Challenger, Tiburon Peninsula Club, 1600 Mar West St., Tiburon, Calif., 94920, www.tiburon challenger.com, (415) 789-7900.