Two days of thrilling ATP Cup action has wowed Australian crowds and raised money for the victims of the bushfires sweeping the country.
Top Seeds Come Up Trumps
With some of the biggest names of the game in action, only Roger Federer has been missing from the world’s top eight players taking part in the ATP Cup on Aussie soil. Rafael Nadal kicked off his own campaign with a victory against Georgia as the world number one beat Nikoloz Basilashvili 6-3, 7-5. That gave Spain a 2-0 lead, unassailable in the best-of-three group stage format.
World number two Novak Djokovic helped his Serbian side to a win too, as he eventually got the better of Grand Slam finalist Kevin Anderson by winning two desperately tight sets in tie-breaks.
Dominic Thiem could not do the same, his Austrian team going down to Croatia after Thiem himself was beaten by Borna Coric, the match coming after an earlier singles match win for Marin Cilic.
France and Japan Flying High
Elsewhere on Saturday, France were triumphant, with Benoit Paire securing a come-from-behind victory against Nicolas Jarry, while Gael Monfils beat Cristian Garin in straight sets.
Japan, who were expected to struggle in the absence of their highest-ranked player Kei Nishikori, were able to score a 3-0 win against Uruguay in Group B. In the same group, Argentina snuck past Poland 2-1.
Britain Keep Their End Up
Great Britain, shorn of the services of their greatest player Andy Murray after the two-time Wimbledon winner pulled out of the Australian tennis season just weeks before the opening serve, lost against Bulgaria on Friday, but managed to beat Belgium on Sunday to force their way to the final group game.
It was Jamie Murray and Joe Salisbury who won through as they triumphed 6-3, 7-6 (9-7) against Belgian duo Joran Vliegen and Sander Gille. The final game had been reached by Dan Evans, who had won against all the odds against the highly-rated David Goffin.
Germany in Trouble as Bewildered Becker Looks On
Boris Becker was left bereft as team captain as Alexander Zverev endured an error-strewn defeat as he crashed to Stefanos Tsitsipas 6-4,6-1. Zverev was in a negative place during much of the match, addressing his father and coach Alexander senior during the display.
Germany won the doubles match to win 2-1 but Zverev’s troubles – coupled with Tsitsipas’ dominance of him – do not bode well for the next year on the circuit as things stand.
Other Nations Win
Australia may not have had Nick Kyrgios to call on during their match with Canada, but still won 3-0 spurred on by so many players donating funds to help the bushfire victims, with other celebrities over the weekend donating too, including Pink and Nicole Kidman.
Russia beat the U.S.A. to make the next stage, as world number four Daniil Medvedev cruised to a straight sets win over John Isner and Karen Khachanov beat Taylor Fritz 3-6, 7-5, 6-1.
All is still to play for in the final round of group matches.
Weekend ATP Cup Results:
France 2-1 Chile
Japan 3-0 Uruguay
Argentina 2-1 Poland
Serbia 3-0 South Africa
Spain 3-0 Georgia
Croatia 3-0 Austria
Canada 0-3 Australia
Italy 2-1 Norway
Bulgaria 2-1 Moldova
Germany 2-1 Greece
Russia 2-1 United States
Great Britain 2-1 Belgium
