Taylor Dent in Davis Cup tug-of-war

A little-known tennis player who has lost more matches than he's won and doesn't even have a coach has suddenly found himself at the centre of a simmering dispute between two of the sport's superpowers.

Taylor Dent, ranked 129th in the world, is the unlikely man caught in the middle of a tug-of-war between the United States and Australia.

Both countries want Dent to play Davis Cup for them. Dent was born and raised in America but is also eligible to play for Australia because his father, 1974 Australian Open runner-up Phil Dent, is an Aussie.

"To me he's an American and he's always been an American," said U.S. Davis Cup captain Patrick McEnroe.

"He grew up in America and he's had a lot of help from the USTA."

With both countries keen to get him on board early, the stakes have been raised -- McEnroe has already told Dent he wants him to join Pete Sampras and Andy Roddick as a hitting partner for next month's first round tie against Slovakia.

Dent has not done enough in his career just yet to warrant a place in either country's team, winning just 10 of 23 matches last season while trying to coach himself. But the 20-year-old has shown enough to suggest he is a player on the rise and worth pursuing.

CENTRE COURT

Dent Snr, a stalwart of Australian Davis Cup teams in the 1960s and 70s, has expressed an interest in seeing his son play for Australia and Australian officials have been quick to show their support, giving Taylor a wildcard entry into the Australian Open and putting him on the centre court in front of a full-house.

Dent did at least vindicate their decision when he beat Sweden's Andreas Vinciguerra 6-3 6-4 6-2 on Wednesday to reach the third round of the Australian Open, his best ever performance at a grand slam, but said he wasn't making promises about Davis Cup.

"My loyalties lie with the U.S. I'm probably heading in that direction but I haven't made a final decision yet," he said.

"That will have to come down the road, maybe in a few months.

"It's definitely flattering. It's nice to be wanted but I have to get better before I can make steady impact in Davis Cup."