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Provided on: 05/12/2021 – 21:11
Russia declared a third Davis Cup title on Sunday after Daniil Medvedev and Andrey Rublev both won their singles matches to beat Croatia.
Medvedevs 7-6 (9/7), 6-2 victory over Marin Cilic followed Rublev had earlier prevailed 6-4, 7-6 (7/5) over Borna Gojo, providing Russia an undisputable 2-0 lead in Madrid.Croatias biggest opportunity would have remained in the doubles with world number one pair Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic, however they constantly required a surprise in the singles to take the tie to the final rubber.Instead, Medvedev and Rublev, ranked two and 5 in the world respectively, held their nerve to make it 9 out of 10 success for Russias power set in the tournament.Cilic and Gojo were far from overwhelmed and, with Real Madrids Luka Modric supporting in the crowd, they increased to the occasion in a compelling last that in the end turned on two close tie-breaks. Russia have not won the Davis Cup considering that 2006 and failed to reach a single quarter-final in between 2011 and 2018. But Medvedev and Rublev are the leaders of a brand-new generation of skill that might enjoy repeat successes in the future, with Aslan Karatsev and Karen Khachanov likewise ranked in the top 30.
Triumph for the males likewise finishes a Russian one-two after the ladiess team won the Billie Jean King Cup in Prague last month. The last country to do the double was the Czech Republic in 2012. Croatia were no strangers to this phase, this their third Davis Cup final in five years after their 2016 defeat to Argentina and 2018 victory over France.But Russia were firm favourites and it was always going to take something unique either from Cilic, the 33-year-old previous US Open champ, or Gojo, who is ranked 279th in the world.Cilic had opportunities in the first set, including a break point on Medvedevs 2nd serve at 4-3 however an aggressive backhand return struck the tape and rather it went to a tie-break. They changed over with Cilic up 4-2 after a Medvedev forehand skimmed large but Medvedev won four out of the next five indicate create a set point on the Cilic serve.Cilic waited with a bold smash just to send out a forehand approach simply out to provide Medvedev a second opportunity, which he rejected with a double fault.A big serve down the middle though offered Medvedev 8-7 and this time Cilic caved, a backhand going awry to hand away the set.With Cilic tiring and Medvedev growing in self-confidence, the 2nd set was more of a walk. Medvedev protected a break in the 4th game when a Cilic forehand appeared kindly off the net-chord prior to confirming success with a 2nd break when a Cilic forehand fell short.Rublevs accuracy from the baseline had earlier showed definitive however Gojo pressed him hard, especially in the second set, when the Croatian led 5-4 in the tie-break. Rublev delivered under pressure, arrowing an exceptional pass down the line prior to an inside-out forehand winner opened up match point, which he transformed when a Gojo backhand wandered long.( AFP).
Medvedevs 7-6 (9/7), 6-2 triumph over Marin Cilic came after Rublev had previously prevailed 6-4, 7-6 (7/5) over Borna Gojo, providing Russia an undisputable 2-0 lead in Madrid.Croatias greatest possibility would have been in the doubles with world number one set Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic, but they constantly required a surprise in the singles to take the tie to the last rubber.Instead, Medvedev and Rublev, ranked two and 5 in the world respectively, held their nerve to make it 9 out of 10 success for Russias power pair in the tournament.Cilic and Gojo were far from overwhelmed and, with Real Madrids Luka Modric supporting in the crowd, they rose to the celebration in an engaging last that in the end turned on two close tie-breaks. They changed over with Cilic up 4-2 after a Medvedev forehand skimmed large however Medvedev won four out of the next five points to create a set point on the Cilic serve.Cilic conserved it with a bold smash just to send out a forehand approach just out to provide Medvedev a second opportunity, which he spurned with a double fault.A huge serve down the middle though provided Medvedev 8-7 and this time Cilic caved, a backhand going awry to hand away the set.With Cilic tiring and Medvedev growing in confidence, the second set was more of a stroll. Medvedev protected a break in the fourth video game when a Cilic forehand popped up kindly off the net-chord before validating success with a second break when a Cilic forehand fell short.Rublevs precision from the baseline had earlier showed decisive but Gojo pushed him hard, particularly in the 2nd set, when the Croatian led 5-4 in the tie-break.
