Tennis: All present at last in Kazakhstan

After a series of hotel forays, which became like an adventure out of Goldilocks and the Three Bears, the embattled New Zealand Davis Cup tennis team has finally settled into a decent hotel in Almaty.

The first was "too dear", the second was "too grimy", but the third one, as in the beds in the famous Grimms Fairy Tale, was "just right".

As well, marooned team member Alistair Hunt has now joined the team in Kazakhstan, and the squad is ready for action.

Hunt had visa problems and was stranded in Frankfurt for three days awaiting clearance.

Meanwhile, team manager Paul Smith says they are also now in a suitable hotel after the original hotel had nearly tripled the price.

He says they were quoted US$150 for the first hotel and then found out it would cost US$400 a night because of the change of seasons, which was out of their price bracket.

They quickly booked into another hotel and found that the food and hygiene were not up to scratch.

However, the third hotel they tried is "comfortable … and the food is great".

Smith says the facilities at the tennis centre are good and they have no complaints heading into the tie, which starts on Friday.

- NEWSTALK ZB