Alcantara to replace Anasta in PH vs Thailand Davis tie

THE Philippines Davis Cup team will be manned by almost the same players except for one replacement for its April 5 to 7 tie against Thailand in the second round of the Davis Cup Group II Asia/Oceania at the Plantation Bay Resort and Spa.

The home team will be manned by Johnny Arcilla, Ruben Gonzales, Treat Conrad Huey and Francis Casey Alcantara who will replace Elbert Anasta.

The Thailand team, on the other hand, will have Danai Udomchoke, Wishaya Trongcharoenchaikul, Nuttanon Kadchapanan and Pruchya Isarow.

Although the Philippines lead Thailand 3-2 in their all-time head to head, Thailand has three players with world rankings as opposed to two ranked players for the host.

Gonzales is ranked 826th while Huey is ranked 1,085 in singles and 27th in the doubles.

Huey is fresh from partnering with Jerzy Janowicz against the world’s top doubles team Mike and Bob Bryan in the recent Indian Wells.

Although tge unseeded Huey and Poland’s Janowicz lost the title to the Bryan brothers, they advanced to the finals by upsetting top pairs such as Andy and Jamie Murray and James Blake and Mardy Fish.

Thailand, on the other hand, has Udomchoke who is ranked 210th in the world while Trongcharoenchaikul is at 913 and Kadchapanan at 1,234.

The last time that the Philippines battled Thailand was in 1999.

While Thailand have been playing in Group II for the last two years, the home team have been switching from Group I to II in the last seven years.