Fernando will be withdrawing from an exhibition in Abu Dhabi that was set for the new year. He was intending to play the three-day, six-man Capitala World Tennis Championship that is due to be held from December 31, 2009 – January 2, 2010, but is withdrawing from the tournament to take care of his foot injury. He will likely be getting foot surgery shortly after the Davis Cup final, and will need at least the rest of the month to recover and get back to training.

“Unfortunately, I have decided – in conjunction with my coaches – that I need to make several adjustments to my schedule for the beginning of 2010. Throughout the year I have suffered from a foot injury for which I was to have surgery after the US Open. My doctors advised me to reconsider the surgery and to make a decision after the Davis Cup Finals. Regardless of whether or not I have the surgery, I will need to take a significant time of rest and thus I will not be able to participate in the tournament.”

Nando is begin replaced in the exhibition by Stanislas Wawrinka. No word yet on whether it will affect his participation in the exhibition in Kooyong which starts January 13.

(via UAE Today)

The team for the 2009 Davis Cup final against the Czech Republic has been announced!

Team captain Albert Costa has chosen Fernando, along with Rafael Nadal, Feliciano Lopez and David Ferrer to represent Spain in next month’s final, with Tommy Robredo as the fifth player, should someone need to withdraw. Juan Carlos Ferrero, who stepped up to help the team in the quarterfinals against Germany and semifinals against Israel, has been sidelined by an illness.

(via marca)

Today, November 15th, is Fernando’s 26th birthday :) He was born in Madrid in 1985 to José & Olga Verdasco.

The tennis dream for Nando started early. When he was barely a year old, his grandfather would put him in front of the television and turn on tennis matches to stop his crying; it worked: a smile appeared every time he watched tennis on TV. He loved running around the local tennis court and listening to the sound of the ball when older people would play. In fact, whenever he was taken away from the court, he started crying.

At age two, he could already pick up a racquet and hit the ball over the net. While other children his age were only interested in playing soccer or watching cartoons, Fernando would be watching tennis matches, especially John McEnroe and Andre Agassi, his childhood idols.

Nando began taking tennis lessons at age four and he was enrolled in a tennis academy near his home when he turned ten. As his potential grew, the Spanish Federation gave him a scholarship and, at 15, he moved to Barcelona where he won the Spanish championship under 16 and several other tournaments.

From the dream of a child to present day reality, Fernando is currently the eighth-ranked player in the world, the second best player in Spain and preparing for his first appearance in the season-ending ATP Tour Finals. He has three ATP tour titles and helped, in what he considers his finest moment, in the absence of compatriot Rafael Nadal, lead his Davis Cup teammates to victory, delivering a win in the final match to make Spain the world champions.

Since the huge win at the Davis Cup, Fernando has has continued to roll on the crest of a wave that has so far led him to a marquee year in 2009 that saw him reach three ATP 250 series finals (winning one) the quarterfinals of six ATP Masters events, the semi-finals of the Australian Open, quarterfinals of the U.S. Open and the fourth round in the French Open and Wimbledon.

Fernando is now preparing to cap off his best season to date with his first ever appearance at the year-end ATP World Tour Finals in London, as well as another chance to help Spain with a consecutive Davis Cup title in the Davis Cup finals this December in Barcelona.

Happy Birthday Fernando, best of luck in London, in Barcelona and for the new year :)

The Elite 8 for the London Year End Championships has been decided and Fernando, with a little help from his friends, has clinched the final spot.

Nando has probably already sent his thanks to Novak Djokovic, who defeated Robin Soderling 6-4, 1-6, 6-3, and to Rafa, who knocked out Jo-Wilfried Tsonga in two close sets, 7-5, 7-5. Soderling and Tsonga are now alternates should someone need to withdraw from the tournament.

“I am so happy to have qualified; it is such a big thing to finish among the Top 8. It is a new experience for me, my first time there. I will try my best as usual and enjoy it as much as I can. I have heard so many good things about the venue in London and I look forward to competing there against the best players in front of so many fans.”

Nando will have this next week off to rest and recuperate and get ready for the tough challenge ahead. Congratulations Nando, for making your first ever Tour finals :) Vamos!

Davis Cup team captain Albert Costa had announced that Spain’s team for the 2009 Davis Cup final will be announced after the Paris Masters. Costa has been attending matches in Shanghai, Valencia and Paris to monitor the Armada boys and assess their form before making the all-important team selection for next month’s final against the Czech Republic.

Nando and Rafa are almost assuredly going to be on the team, as will Feli, who will likely return to doubles duty with Nando. The final spot is really anyone’s guess, as Juan Carlos Ferrero and David Ferrer, who were key in helping lead the team to victory in the quarter and semifinals, are both suffering injuries, which means Costa may decide to go with Tommy Robredo, or even Nicolas Almagro if Ferrero and Ferrer are unavailable.

(via as.com)

No idea what this is from as of yet, but here’s a couple of pictures of Fernando and Nikolay Davydenko at some sort of ceremony for…something (helpful, I know) If I find out what it’s for, I’ll be sure to add an update. It does appear that Nando’s been borrowing clothes from Feli’s closet again :)

UPDATE: Thanks to Gl3nn75 on twitter, apparently Nando and Kolya were given exclusive masgold membership to the Sol Meliá Vacation Club. Membership is invite only and masgold membership is only available to a select lucky few!

Click to enlarge :)

via valencia open

The Valencia Open 500 is one of the final regular events on tour before the end of the season, and the race is on among several players to gain all-important ranking points here, in an effort to qualify for the two remaining spots at the Year-End Championships in London this November.

Nando, getting in some practice before his first round match!

Prior to starting the tournament, a few of the players got together to try out a few games at the Wii Fit station set up on the tournament grounds. Looks like Nando, along with fellow Spaniards Feliciano Lopez & Nicolas Almagro, and Gilles Simon of France, had a great time trying out the game system!

ATP stars posing outside the Agora, the site of the 2009 Valencia Open 500: Feliciano Lopez, Nicolas Almagro, Nikolay Davydenko, Andy Murray, Juan Carlos Ferrero, Tommy Robredo, Nando, and Tomas Berdych

Tecnifibre Spain organized a promotional event with Tecnifibre star Fernando Verdasco yesterday in Valencia. In front of a large crowd, Nando practiced with a group of juniors sponsored by Tecnifibre. The kids also received their new equipment for the new season from Tecnifibre Spain at the event.

Click to enlarge :)

via tecnifibre

Nando and fellow adidas player Jo-Wilfried Tsonga staged the world’s fastest tennis during a ride on Shanghai’s famous Maglev train, the fastest commercial train on the planet, at speeds of up to 431 km/h (that’s 268mph) The top ten stars attempted to play a mini-game of tennis during the train’s 18.6-mile, eight-minute journey from Longyang Road Train Station to Pudong International Airport.

For Tsonga, “It was a very special experience. I made a few more errors than normal, but at least I was not driving the train because if I made errors then we would all be dead. But it was great for us to do this activity. It is very different than playing tennis in a normal court.”

Nando meanwhile, said “It was a lot of fun, a good experience and you can really feel how fast it is. But I think nobody won. For me it was the first time to ride a train going over 400km/h. I enjoyed it, but I unfortunately I didn’t have much time to see the ride because in only eight minutes we were at the airport.”

Video and pictures under the cut :)

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It has been announced that the Davis Cup final between defending champion Spain and the Czech Republic will be played in Barcelona.

Real Federación Española de Tenis (RFET) has selected Barcelona’s Palau Sant Jordi to host the final, to be played December 4-6. The indoor clay court venue was the site of Spain’s first win in 2000.

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