(First Round) Davis Cup Glory
One of the exciting aspects of Davis Cup is that it allows for “a shining moment” for a player who may never win a Grand Slam title nor reach the later rounds at a major tournament. Nonetheless, he can become a hometown hero by pulling off an upset win
in a critical Davis Cup match. Several players earned that glory in the opening round Ties of the 2011 Davis Cup.
In Serbia, Viktor Troicki picked up where he left off at the end of 2010, leading the Serbian team which was playing without Novak Djokovic, to victory by winning both of his singles matches. In Sweden, Joachim Johansson, a former top player with a booming serve who is working his way back from injuries, beat Russian, Teymuraz Gabashvili in straight sets on opening day to help give Sweden a 2-0 advantage going into the doubles which they won to clinch the Tie. In the Czech Republic, Kazakhstan pulled off the upset as Andrey Golubev and Mikhail Kukushkin combined for three wins to lift their country into the second round. In Croatia, the German team pulled out the win as big-serving Philipp Petzschner won both the doubles point and the decisive fifth rubber to lift the Germans to victory. Finally, the French team, playing without Gael Monfils, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Richard Gasquet managed to pull out the victory in Austria on a temporary clay court which was constructed in an old airport hangar. Jeremy Chardy was the star of the Tie for the French by beating Austrian Number One and top twenty player, Jurgen Melzer, in straight sets to open the Tie and then winning the decisive fifth rubber in four sets. The Davis Cup excitement continues in early July after Wimbledon… stay tuned!
In Serbia, Viktor Troicki picked up where he left off at the end of 2010, leading the Serbian team which was playing without Novak Djokovic, to victory by winning both of his singles matches. In Sweden, Joachim Johansson, a former top player with a booming serve who is working his way back from injuries, beat Russian, Teymuraz Gabashvili in straight sets on opening day to help give Sweden a 2-0 advantage going into the doubles which they won to clinch the Tie. In the Czech Republic, Kazakhstan pulled off the upset as Andrey Golubev and Mikhail Kukushkin combined for three wins to lift their country into the second round. In Croatia, the German team pulled out the win as big-serving Philipp Petzschner won both the doubles point and the decisive fifth rubber to lift the Germans to victory. Finally, the French team, playing without Gael Monfils, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Richard Gasquet managed to pull out the victory in Austria on a temporary clay court which was constructed in an old airport hangar. Jeremy Chardy was the star of the Tie for the French by beating Austrian Number One and top twenty player, Jurgen Melzer, in straight sets to open the Tie and then winning the decisive fifth rubber in four sets. The Davis Cup excitement continues in early July after Wimbledon… stay tuned!
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