KAZAKHSTAN 3, ARGENTINA 2 Astana, Kazakhstan (Indoor clay) Kazakhstan pulled off a major upset on Sunday, defeating defending Davis Cup champions Argentina 3-2. Mikhail Kukushkin, who boasts a 21-13 record in singles for Kazakhstan, sealed victory for his team in a tight 6-4, 6-4, 7-6(2) triumph over Argentina’s Diego Schwartzman in front of a boisterous home crowd at Astana’s National Tennis Centre. Kazakhstan handed Argentina a walkover in the tie’s final dead rubber. Argentina, which was without recent US Open semi-finalist Juan Martin del Potro, will be relegated to Group I of the Americas Zone in 2018. COLOMBIA 1, CROATIA 3 Bogota, Colombia (Outdoor clay) Earning his third point of the tie, Marin Cilic led Croatia back into the Davis...
FRANCE 3, SERBIA 1 Lille, France (Outdoor Clay) Jo-Wilfried Tsonga provided the heroics on Sunday afternoon in Lille, giving France an unassailable 3-1 lead in their Davis Cup semi-final tie against Serbia. The French No. 1 rallied past Dusan Lajovic 2-6, 6-2, 7-6(5), 6-2, claiming his 20th singles victory in his Davis Cup career. Lajovic had stunned Lucas Pouille to open the tie on Friday, but was unable to replicate the upset. Tsonga prevailed after two hours and 48 minutes, firing 38 winners including eight aces. It was sweet revenge for Les Bleus, who were defeated by Serbia in the 2010 final. Under the captaincy of Yannick Noah, the French squad will appear in its first final since 2014. They...
BELGIUM 1, AUSTRALIA 2 Brussels, Belgium (Indoor Clay) John Peers and Jordan Thompson completed a 6-3, 6-4, 6-0 rout of Ruben Bemelmans and Arthur De Greef to nudge Australia ahead of Belgium 2-1 in their semi-final tie. Led by captain Lleyton Hewitt, the Aussie contingent are bidding to reach the Davis Cup final for the first time since 2003, when they clinched their 28th crown. Peers, the No. 2 player in the Emirates ATP Doubles Rankings, and 23-year-old Thompson were making their doubles debut together. Thompson is undefeated in the team competition, also owning a 3-0 singles record entering the week. "We had a job to do today and we came out and did it from start to finish," said...
KAZAKHSTAN 2, ARGENTINA 1 Astana, Kazakhstan (Indoor clay) Defending Davis Cup champion Argentina’s hopes of maintaining its spot in the World Group for the 17th consecutive year are in jeopardy, as Kazakhstan’s Timur Khabibulin and Aleksandr Nedovyesov beat Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni, 5-7, 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 to earn a 2-1 lead in the tie. The defending champions will turn to US Open quarter-finalist Diego Schwartzman to keep his nation’s hopes alive in the fourth rubber against Mikhail Kukushkin. Argentina looks to avoid becoming the third nation to win the Davis Cup before getting relegated from the World Group the next year. If Schwartzman wins, World No. 73 Guido Pella is scheduled to play #NextGenATP Dmitry Popko. NETHERLANDS 1, CZECH...
KAZAKHSTAN 1, ARGENTINA 1 Astana, Kazakhstan (Indoor clay) Defending Davis Cup champion Argentina and Kazakhstan head into Saturday tied 1-1 in their World Group Playoff. ATP World Tour veteran Mikhail Kukushkin started the day with a 6-7(5), 7-6(5), 6-2, 6-4 win against left-hander Guido Pella. But US Open quarter-finalist Diego Schwartzman kept up his impressive play, dismissing Dmitry Popko 6-4, 6-2, 6-2. Kukushkin will partner with Aleksandr Nedovyesov against Maximo Gonzalez and Andres Molteni in doubles on Saturday. COLOMBIA 1, CROATIA 1 Bogota, Colombia (Outdoor clay) Marin Cilic moved to within one win of becoming Croatia's Davis Cup singles match-wins leader on Friday with a 6-1, 6-4, 6-1 victory against Colombia's Alejandro Gonzalez. Santiago Giraldo evened the tie, though, with...