United States, Italy and Spain all win Davis Cup openers

The United States downplayed the absence of several prominent singles players as they commenced their Davis Cup Finals group stage with a victory over Chile on Wednesday.

Reilly Opelka and Brandon Nakashima each engaged in protracted three-set matches, securing a lead for their team in the Group C opener held in Zhuhai, China.

Olympic doubles silver medalists Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek subsequently triumphed over Matias Soto and Tomas Barrios Vera, concluding the contest with a 3-0 victory and positioning themselves alongside Germany at the top of the standings.

Defending champions Italy, missing world number one and recent U.S. Open champion Jannik Sinner, nevertheless commenced their campaign positively, establishing a lead against Brazil in their initial Group A match in Bologna.

Spain featured Carlos Alcaraz, but the world number three faced a challenge against Czech Republic's Tomas Machac, losing the first set tiebreak before claiming the second set 6-1, at which point Machac was compelled to retire, granting Spain an unassailable 2-0 lead in Group B in Valencia. Earlier, Roberto Bautista-Agut had secured a victory over Jiri Lehecka with a score of 7-6(1) 6-4.

American captain Bob Bryan was unable to field US Open runner-up Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe, or Tommy Paul; however, his team demonstrated considerable depth.

Opelka, currently ranked 309th in the world following wrist surgery, overcame 116th-ranked Cristian Garin with a score of 6-3 4-6 7-6(3), while Nakashima, ranked 40th, defeated Alejandro Tabilo 7-6(5) 2-6 7-6(3).

Ram and Krajicek also required three sets in the doubles match, providing the 32-time Davis Cup champions with an ideal start as they aim to reach the quarterfinals for the second time since the new format's inception in 2019.

"It was truly an epic day of tennis for both teams," Bryan remarked. "Everyone displayed tremendous heart and determination. Hats off to the Chileans."

Four groups, each consisting of four nations, are competing across four distinct cities: Zhuhai, Bologna, Valencia, and Manchester. The top two teams from each group will advance to the knockout stage, which features eight nations and will take place in Malaga in November.

In the opening match, Italy's Matteo Berrettini secured a decisive victory over Brazil's Joao Fonseca with a score of 6-1, 7-6(5), providing his team with an excellent start. Following this, Matteo Arnaldi triumphed over Thiago Monteiro in a grueling encounter that lasted three hours and 39 minutes, finishing with scores of 7-5, 6-7(4), and 7-6(5), thereby extending the hosts' lead to 2-0.

Meanwhile, in Manchester, Britain faced Finland in their Group D match, leveraging their home advantage effectively. Debutant Billy Harris clinched the win after Dan Evans had initiated the competition with a victory over Eoro Vasa. Harris, stepping in for the absent British number one Jack Draper, defeated Otto Virtanen with a score of 6-4, 7-6(4).

Finland did manage to secure a win in the doubles match, as Harri Heliovaara and Virtanen overcame Evans and Neal Skupski. On Tuesday, Australia triumphed over France in Group B, while Germany emerged victorious against Slovakia in Group C. Additionally, Belgium defeated the Netherlands in Group A, and Canada achieved victory against Argentina in Group D.

SportsLigue