Thursday, July 13, 2000 | 10:14 a.m.
The pain and disappointment U.S. Davis Cup captain John McEnroe felt when he learned that Las Vegan Andre Agassi would not be able to play next week in a semifinal against Spain pales in comparison to what Agassi is feeling now.
"He's in severe pain," Perry Rogers, president of Andre Agassi Enterprises and Agassi's close friend, said Wednesday. "It's not very good, he can't really move."
According to Rogers, Agassi was driving alone near his home Sunday night on his way back from McCarran International Airport when he was struck from behind.
"Andre was driving," Rogers said. "Andre stopped, the person behind him did not."
After the collision, Agassi exchanged information with the driver, but no police report was filed, Rogers said. Agassi was not taken to the hospital and returned home instead.
McEnroe, speaking at length Wednesday about the skeleton of a squad that will face Spain in Santander, Spain, July 21-23, likened not having Agassi on the team to the Los Angeles Lakers missing this year's Most Valuable Player Shaquille O'Neal or all-star Kobe Bryant during their championship run.
Without Agassi and Sampras, recovering from acute tendinitis above his left ankle, the U.S. team will consist of seven-time Davis Cup veteran Todd Martin, Wimbledon quarterfinalist Jan-Michael Gambill, Chris Woodruff and McEnroe as a player/captain.
"That was obviously more shocking because it came out of the blue," McEnroe said of Agassi's accident. "Andre has been my main guy.
"Obviously, as you could tell from the first couple matches, we as a team, and myself as captain, have been banking on him to win a couple matches for us.
"To say that I was disappointed, like I said, it would be a major understatement."
On Monday, according to a statement, Davis Cup doctor George Fareed examined Agassi in Las Vegas. Fareed determined that Agassi had hyperextended his mid and lower back. Fareed added that Agassi is experiencing muscular spasms on the right side of his spine and a strain of his ribs and the right side of his back. The pain from the injuries has prevented Agassi from raising his right arm above his shoulder, Fareed said.
"We don't know how long he is going to be out for," Rogers said. "That's why they're going to probably do an MRI to determine whether there was any structural or skeletal damage."
The news that both Agassi and Sampras won't be playing was the latest blow to the team that has struggled mightily this year. McEnroe figured the chance of either player being able to compete was minimal.
"I would say one in 100 at best," McEnroe said. "That's just my guess.
"If they told me they wanted to play, I certainly would make room for them."
Each Davis Cup captain has up until 10 minutes before the draw next Thursday to replace as many as two of its players.
McEnroe named himself as part of the squad because he was unable to get hold of some of his other choices, Paul Goldstein and Vince Spadea, but said he will not play unless absolutely necessary.
The team needs all the help it can get against the Spaniard contingent of Alex Corretja, Juan-Carlos Ferrero, Alberto Costa and Juan Balcells.
All four are clay-court specialists while the American players have traditionally struggled on that surface. Because Spain is the host nation, it was allowed to choose the playing surface.
Several times during the conference call McEnroe jokingly requested that people pray for the success of the team.
"I think even with the best players available, it was going to be very difficult to play on clay," said McEnroe, stressing that he would play doubles if needed. "They have three of the top 10 players in the world on that surface.
In the first round against Zimbabwe, the U.S. team that included Agassi was on the brink of elimination until Woodruff, a relatively unknown player coming back from a knee injury, put on a gutsy performance to help the Americans advance, 3-2.
Then, playing the second round against the Czech Republic at the Forum in Inglewood, Calif., with what some have called the best Davis Cup team ever of Agassi, Sampras and doubles specialists Alex O' Brien and Jared Palmer, it was Agassi who saved the team, which squeaked out another dramatic 3-2 victory.
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