* Japan reaches quarterfinal as injuries continue for Canada
* Kazakhstan holds off Belgian comeback
* Berdych wins three points to put Czechs back in quarterfinal
* Fognini scores three-pointer for Italy
* Murray clinches for Britain with four-set win over Querrey
Davis Cup
Was it Kei Nishikori, or was it the Tennis Gods?
Consider this: Canada’s three top singles players all went down in the Davis Cup tie with Japan. Milos Raonic wasn’t even with the team due to an ankle injury. Vasek Pospisil had to pull out of the doubles with a back injury. That left singles duty to Frank Dancevic — and he hurt himself and had to retire trailing Kei Nishikori 6-2 1-0. Technically, Nishikori won all three points needed to secure a quarterfinal spot for Japan — but he had a lot of help….
In the final match, Go Soeda beat Peter Polansky 6-1 6-4. That made the official score 4-1 for Japan. But the unofficial score might be listed as Injuries 1, Canada 0.
Japan reaches the quarterfinal for the first time. Too bad for them that they have to face the defending champions next.
The official score in the contest between Germany and Spain was 4-1. But Spain didn’t actually win anything. Feliciano Lopez was supposed to face Philipp Kohlschreiber in the fourth match, but Kohlschreiber had played singles and doubles and is supposed to play again next week; he bailed out (which caused the fans to boo the team; in the absence of a meaningful match, they at least wanted two dead matches). That left it to Daniel Brands to play out the dead rubber; he beat Roberto Bautista Agut (who admitted to “zero motivation”) 7-6 6-4.
The tie between Kazakhstan and Belgium at least featured some drama, even though it seems likely that winner Kazakhstan will get stomped in the next round. The Kazakhs started Sunday with a 2-1 lead, but David Goffin, who had lost 12-10 in the fifth on Friday, made up for it by winning another marathon on Sunday, 4-6 6-3 3-6 6-4 6-0 over Mikhail Kukushkin. Unfortunately for Belgium, Andrei Golubev (who of course had won that monster match over Goffin) again showed what he can do on the rare days that he is on. He crushed Ruben Bemelmans 6-2 6-3 6-1, and the Kazakhs were in the quarterfinal.
The Japanese perhaps weren’t the only ones helped by injury. Robin Haase of the Netherlands, who was supposed to face Tomas Berdych, didn’t come out; Thiemo de Bakker took his place. And got stomped 6-1 6-4 6-3. That put the Czechs in the quarterfinal, and let Radek Stepanek have a day off; Lukas Rosol took on Igor Sijsling — but, having no motivation, lost 6-3 6-3. So the official final score was 3-2.
France had already beaten Australia, so Sunday’s action was a formality — and the first match, at least, wasn’t even much of that. Substitute Julien Benneteau beat substitute Thanasi Kokkinakis 6-4 6-1. The second match was a little more interesting, but substitute Gael Monfils completed the 5-0 sweep (the only sweep of this round) by beating Nick Kyrgios 7-6 6-4.
Once Serbia was out of it, they really got into it. Of course, it helped that they played their first-string players (at least, the first string of those they had), while Switzerland played their bench. Dushan Lajovic started Sunday’s action by beating Michael Lammer 6-3 3-6 6-4. Then Filip Krajinovic beat Marco Chiudinelli 6-4 6-4. That made the final score 3-2 for the Swiss — but it was a lot less close than that scoreline.
Fabio Fognini had had a very long doubles match the day before, but he clearly wanted to win for Italy. It took him another three and a half hours on the court, but he beat Carlos Berlocq 7-6 4-6 6-1 6-4 to clinch for the Italians. They didn’t bother with the fifth match. Fognini earned all three of Italy’s points; Argentina is out of the World Group for the first time in thirteen years. One suspects there will be a lot of charges flying between Juan Martin del Potro and the rest of the Argentine tennis establishment after this.
The last tie of the week was of course that between the Americans and the British, which opened with Sam Querrey needing to beat Andy Murray to keep the Americans alive. He did a surprisingly good job — if he had done this well in the first singles, the Americans might have been in better shape. It took Murray two sets to really get into the match — but once he did, it went fast. Murray won 7-6 6-7 6-1 6-3, and Britain was in the quarterfinal. They didn’t bother playing out the dead rubber.
THIS WEEK ON THE ATP WORLD TOUR:
Vina del Mar (250/Clay). Defending Champion: Horacio Zeballos
Montpellier (250/Indoor Hard). Defending Champion: Richard Gasquet
Zagreb (250/Indoor Hard). Defending Champion: Marin Cilic
NEXT WEEK ON THE ATP WORLD TOUR:
Rotterdam (500/Indoor Hard). Defending Champion: Juan Martin del Potro
Memphis (250/Indoor Hard). Defending Champion (as an ATP 500): Kei Nishikori
Buenos Aires (250/Clay). Defending Champion: David Ferrer
******** STATS AND FACTS ********
RANKINGS
**DRAWS
Montpellier — week of February 3, 2014
1 Gasquet
–bye
Mathieu (WC)
Mahut
de Schepper
Qualifier
Davydenko
8 Benneteau
3 Janowicz
–bye
Bautista Agut
Mannarino
Gabashvili
Brown
Przysiezny
7 Roger-Vasselin
5 Monfils
Kubot
Kamke
Sousa
Istomin
Qualifier
–bye
4 Tursunov
6 Nieminen
Nedovyesov
Herbert (WC)
Qualifier
Llodra
Qualifier
–bye
2 Simon
Vina del Mar — week of February 3, 2014
1 Fognini
–bye
Bedene
Robert
Volandri
Carreno Busta
Garin (WC)
5 Chardy
3 Almagro
–bye
Qualifier
Ramos
Qualifier
Qualifier
Cuevas (PR)
8 Delbonis
7 Garcia-Lopez
Reister
Lorenzi
A Gonzalez
Giraldo
Qualifier
–bye
4 Granollers
6 Dolgopolov (WC)
Gimeno-Traver
Zeballos
Lama (WC)
Haider-Maurer
L Mayer
–bye
2 Robredo
Zagreb — week of February 3, 2014
1 Haas
–bye
Huta Galung
Becker
Qualifier
Stakhovsky
Kavcic
8 Sijsling
3 Kohlschreiber
–bye
Golubev
Hanescu
Qualifier
Coric (WC)
Hajek
7 Stepanek
5 Cilic
M Delic (WC)
Lajovic
Qualifier
Brands
Karlovic
–bye
4 Dodig
6 Rosol
Sela
Lacko
Struff
Qualifier
A Pavic (WC)
–bye
2 Youzhny
******** SCORES ********
DAVIS CUP
Czech Republic hosts Netherlands (Indoor Hard)
Friday: Tied 1-1
R Haase def. R Stepanek 3-6 6-4 6-7(4-7) 6-2 6-1
T Berdych def. I Sijsling 6-3 6-3 6-0
Saturday: Czech Republic leads 2-1
Berdych/Stepanek def. Haase/Rojer 7-5 1-6 7-6(7-2) 7-6(7-4)
Sunday: Czech Republic wins 3-2
T Berdych def. T de Bakker 6-1 6-4 6-3
I Sijsling def. L Rosol 6-3 6-3
Japan hosts Canada (Indoor Hard)
Friday: Tied 1-1
K Nishikori def. P Polansky 6-4 6-4 6-4
F Dancevic def. G Soeda 6-4 7-6(7-2) 6-1
Saturday: Japan leads 2-1
Nishikori/Uchiyama def. Dancevic/Nestor 6-3 7-6(7-3) 4-6 6-4
Sunday: Japan wins 4-1
K Nishikori def. F Dancevic 6-2 1-0, retired
G Soeda def. P Polansky 6-1 6-4
Germany hosts Spain (Rebound Ace)
Friday: Germany leads 2-0
P Kohlschreiber def. R Bautista Agut 6-2 6-4 6-2
F Mayer def. F Lopez 7-6(7-5) 7-6(7-4) 1-6 5-7 6-3
Saturday: Germany clinches 3-0
Haas/Kohlschreiber def. Marrero/Verdasco 7-6(7-5) 6-7(9-11) 7-6(9-7) 6-3
Sunday: Germany wins 4-1
F Lopez def. P Kohlschreiber walkover
D Brands def. R Bautista Agut 7-6(7-5) 6-4
France hosts Australia (Indoor Clay)
Friday: France leads 2-0
R Gasquet def. N Kyrgios 7-6(7-3) 6-2 6-2
J Tsonga def. L Hewitt 6-3 6-2 7-6(6-2)
Saturday: France clinches 3-0
Gasquet/Tsonga def. Guccione/Hewitt 5-7 7-6(7-4) 6-2 7-5
Sunday: France wins 5-0
J Benneteau def. T Kokkinakis 6-4 6-1
G Monfils def. N Kyrgios 7-6(7-5) 6-4
Kazakhstan hosts Belgium (Indoor Hard)
Friday: Kazakhstan leads 2-0
M Kukushkin def. R Bemelmans 6-4 6-7(3-7) 6-2 6-3
A Golubev def. D Goffin 7-6(11-9) 3-6 4-6 6-2 12-10
Saturday: Kazakhstan leads 2-1
Bemelmans/Rochus def. Kukushkin/Korolev 6-2 6-7(4-7) 6-3 7-6(7-4)
Sunday: Kazakhstan wins 4-1
D Goffin def. M Kukushkin 4-6 6-3 3-6 6-4 6-0
A Golubev def. R Bemelmans 6-2 6-3 6-1
Argentina hosts Italy (Clay)
Friday: Tied 1-1
C Berlocq def. A Seppi 4-6 6-0 6-2 6-1
F Fognini def. J Monaco 7-5 6-2 6-2
Saturday: Italy leads 2-1
Bolelli/Fognini def. Schwank/Zeballos 7-6(8-6) 6-7(8-10) 7-6(7-3) 6-4
Sunday: Italy wins 3-1
F Fognini def. C Berlocq 7-6(7-5) 4-6 6-1 6-4
final match not played
Serbia hosts Switzerland (Indoor Hard)
Friday: Switzerland leads 2-0
R Federer def. I Bozoljac 6-4 7-5 6-2
S Wawrinka def. D Lajovic 6-4 4-6 6-1 7-6(9-7)
Saturday: Switzerland clinches 3-0
Chiudinelli/Lammer def. Krajinovic/Zimonjic 7-6(7-3) 3-6 7-6(7-2) 6-2
Sunday: Switzerland wins 3-2
D Lajovic def. M Lammer 6-3 3-6 6-4
F Krajinovic def. M Chiudinelli 6-4 6-4
United States hosts Great Britain (Clay)
Friday: Great Britain leads 2-0
A Murray def. D Young 6-1 6-2 6-3
J Ward def. S Querrey 1-6 7-6(7-3) 3-6 6-4 6-1
Saturday: Great Britain leads 2-1
Bryan/Bryan def. Fleming/Inglot 6-2 6-3 3-6 6-1
Sunday: Great Britain wins 3-1
A Murray def. S Querrey 7-6(7-5) 6-7(3-7) 6-1 6-3
final match not played
Topics: 10sballs, Andy Murray, Bob Bryan, David Ferrer, Davis Cup, Donald Young, Frank Dancevic, Go Soeda, Juan Martin Del Potro, Kei Nishikori, Mike Bryan, Rafael Nadal, Robin Haase, Roger Federer, Sam Querrey, Sports, Tennis, Tennis News, Tomas Berdych