Philippoussis "in best shape of his life'' for Cup Final
By Australian Tennis Magazine Editor Paul Macpherson

Mark Philippoussis is in peak physical and mental condition leading into the Davis Cup Final according to his coach Gavin Hopper. Philippoussis has spent the past week practising and running with Hopper in Florida. The giant Aussie has recovered fully from the knee and ankle injuries which troubled him for months after Wimbledon, and has dispelled any fears that a lack of match practice would tell against him in the Cup Final against France in Nice from December 3-5.
"He's definitely in the best shape of his life," Hopper said. "The knee is 100 per cent and he's in great shape physically. He's certainly in good enough condition to go the distance. If it was the French Open where potentially he had to play five or six five-setters, he may need a bit more time to prepare. But he's only looking at two matches with a day's break in between, and Mark isn't the type of player who gets into long, grinding rallies anyway."

Equally as important as Philippoussis' physical health is his mental outlook on the eve of the Final. In the past he has been apathetic about representing his country, but Hopper says that Philippoussis is dead keen to play in the Final.

"He's just so positive at the moment. He knows this is a very special event in his career and for Australian tennis. A tell-tale sign is how he's begun to get a little irritable if he's not hitting the ball perfectly. You notice in a lot of top players that when a Grand Slam or major event like this is coming up they expect everything to be perfect with their game. Six to eight weeks ago we weren't sure if he would be playing because we didn't know how his knee would hold up and there were three guys in the equation for two singles spots. But when it became known that Pat (Rafter) would be out with injury and Newk gave Mark an indication he'd be playing, he's been unbelievable ever since."

Hopper and Philippoussis have been hitting on green clay during the past week - red clay is difficult to find in the US. Hopper is happy with the way the Scud is moving and says his star pupil will be fresh for the Final. "His movement patterns on the first day were a little clumsy, but he hadn't played on clay for so long," Hopper said. "Sliding correctly is of number one importance on clay and Mark's starting to get that right now. He'll head into the Final with a lot of confidence. He knows he can beat the French guys on clay and they've had a lot of tennis, while Mark's still very fresh."

Philippoussis flies out from Florida on Friday to join his teammates at a training camp in San Remo, Italy.