Australia clinched the first ticket to the Davis Cup semi-finals, beating the Netherlands 2-0 in Malaga. Lleyton Hewitt’s men will face either Spain or Croatia.
If sports fans around the world have their eyes on Qatar and the football World Cup, the Tennis World Cup is taking place at the same time, in Malaga. And while football Australia was beaten 4-1 by France in its first match, tennis Australia secured a place in the semi-finals thanks to its victory over the Netherlands. Jordan Thompson and Alex De Minaur netted Australia’s two points, each winning a match in straight sets. Thompson, the world No. 84, was the first to enter, facing Tallon Griekspoor (96th), whom he faced for the first time. And he won 4-6, 7-5, 6-3 in 2:54. The Australian served 16 aces and was broken twice: at 0-0 and 2-2 in the first set. But after losing that first set, he responded very well by winning the next two, with a break at 6-5 in the second and 3-2 in the third.
De Minaur tears away
Alex De Minaur (24th) and Botic van de Zandschulp (35th) were then opposed in the No. 1 match, again for the first time. And the Australian won 5-7, 6-3, 6-4 in 2:39 after a scenario almost identical to the previous match. De Minaur lost the first set by giving up his serve at the worst moment, at 5-6. But he won the second by breaking at 0-0 and 5-3, and the third by taking the Dutchman’s serve on a shutout at 5-4, when he had saved a break point in the previous game. Australia will therefore play the semi-finals, against Spain and Croatia, which meet on Wednesday from 4:00 p.m. Carreno Busta and Bautista Agut are the two best selected Epsgnols, and Cilic and Coric the two best Croats.
DAVIS CUP 2022
From November 22 to 27 in Malaga (Spain)
Quarter-finals
Tuesday, November 22
Australia bat Pays-Bas : 2-0
Wednesday, November 23
16h00 : Croatia – Spain
Thursday, November 24
10:00 a.m.: Italy – United States
16h00 : Germany – Canada