2024-09-14 06:46:18
Argentina is more alive than ever in the Davis Cup. In the second of the three series that it must play in Group D in Manchester, the team captained by Guillermo Coria defeated Great Britain, taking a key step towards the quarter-finals.
After the defeat against Canada last Tuesday, and considering that the British had won their first series, Argentina had the obligation to win today; otherwise, they would have been eliminated. However, Thomas Etcheverry y Francisco Cerúndolo They achieved successes in their singles, and sealed the story.
Etcheverry, 34th in the ATP ranking, faced Daniel Evanscurrently ranked 178th in the world, but who was as high as 21st last year. After a couple of close games, and after saving some break chances against him, the player from La Plata won four games in a row to take the first set 6-2. In the second, the parity was much greater, but Etcheverry broke at the right moment, to serve 6-5; and there, with his serve, and on his sixth opportunity, he closed the set 7-5, to secure his victory.
So things being as they were, Cerúndolo jumped into the AO Arena with some relief to face Jack Draper20th in the world and in great form. In a duel between two very powerful players, the Argentine, 31st in the ranking, took the first set 7-6 (4), after failing to close it with his serve when he was 5-4 up. And in the second set, he quickly came back from a break down, held his serve throughout the set, and just with Draper serving at 5-6, he won the four points on his rival’s serve, to take the set 7-5, and win the match, thus sealing Argentina’s victory in the series.
With this victory, Argentina has a great chance of advancing to the quarterfinals. To do so, they must defeat Finland tomorrow, which is the most likely opponent in the group; and then, they must hope that Canada beats Great Britain on Sunday. If this combination does not occur, the “albiceleste” team will have to wait for the tiebreaker based on games won.