By Chris Oddo | Sunday, March 8, 2015
Thanasi Kokkinakis pulled off an improbable comeback in his first live Davis Cup singles rubber, and he wasn't the only on this weekend.
Photo Source: AFP
Another week is in the books, and a fresh batch of heroes—and zeros—to go with it. Find out who got high marks and who didn’t make the grade at Davis Cup, Monterrey, Kuala Lumpur and beyond.
The Trophy Kissers/ Patriots
Leonardo Mayer
The Argentine missed on 10 match points during his epic battle with Joao Souza in Buenos Aires, but he made the 11th and became the winner of the longest singles rubber in Davis Cup history. For 33 years, John McEnroe and Mats Wilander’s epic set the standard for Davis Cup diligence, but Mayer and Souza topped them by 21 minutes, pushing each other on the red clay for six hours and 43 minutes in the second-longest recorded singles match of all time.
Mayer enjoyed a rousing, emotional moment with the crowd after the match, but afterwards, daviscup.com reported that he had to be treated for dehydration. It’s no wonder. Look at this bunny hop:
"I couldn't feel prouder of him,” said his Captain, Daniel Orsanic. “What he did today is amazing, not only for the way they both played tennis... It goes beyond that. His spirit, his effort. He played with cramp for such a long time.”
Kudos to Souza as well, who nearly brought Brazil to the World Group quarterfinals for the first time since 2001. He had battled for five hours on Friday with Carlos Berlocq, and totaled 11:40 on the clay in two days. "We both deserved the victory, to me,” said Souza. “But one guy had to lose the match. I just want to say congrats to him."
James Ward, Sniper in Wait
For the second consecutive year, career journeyman James Ward has played the pivotal role in Great Britain’s takedown of Team U.S.A. The world No. 111 battled back from two sets down despite facing heavy artillery in the form of 39 aces to down America’s top dog John Isner in five rip-roaring sets.
The victory put Great Britain in the driver’s set, and Andy Murray would seal the tie on Sunday when he scorched a despondent Isner in straights.
“As much as Andy Murray was mesmerizing, what James has done there is absolutely phenomenal,” said Great Britain’s Captain Leon Smith. “He showed a lot of heart. He showed so much courage there, and quality. I’m so delighted for him.”
Gael Monfils
The magical, mystical Monfils is emerging as a bona fide leader of the French Davis Cup team right now. Most people want to think of Monfils as a scatter-brained attention-monger who prefers the spotlight and his artistic freedom more than what’s on the scoreboard. But now that La Monf has won seven straight singles rubbers in Davis Cup, maybe it’s time we start respecting Monfils for more than his ability to dazzle?
This while, of course, letting your jaw drop as you watch shots like the one embedded below, which are routinely pulled off in the heat of battle. Who hits a head-hunting ‘tweener? Who? Monfils. That’s who:
Thanasi Kokkinakis
In his first live Davis Cup rubber the 18-year-old battled back from two sets and a break down to surge past Lukas Rosol. That’s a tremendous job for a kid who had gotten to deuce only once before late in the third set when Rosol served for the match, and blinked. From there it was all Rosol, and all Australia, which defeated the Czechs in Ostrava to set up a quarterfinal clash with Kazakhstan.
Caroline Wozniacki, Kuala Lumpur
The Great Dane notched career title 23 at the BMW Malaysian Open with a signature effort, grinding down Alexandra Dulgheru over three sets for her first title since last July.
Timea Bacsinszky, Monterrey
Bacsinszky ran her winning streak to 12, winning the second of back-to-back titles in Mexico with a three-set takedown of Caroline Garcia in Monterrey.
Aleksandr Nedovyesov
The world No. 130 knocked off Fabio Fognini in a decisive 5th rubber that went five sets, sparking off pandemonium in Astana. This was Nedovyesov’s first Davis Cup singles rubber, but he was a part of the doubles team that took down Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka (remember them?) in Geneva last year.
Achievements and Inspirations:
Henri Laaksonen, Swiss Davis Cup Team:
We know what you’re saying: Henri who? Well, Laaksonen helped the Swiss make the best of what was a difficult weekend without Stan Wawrinka and Roger Federer, by winning two five-set matches over players ranked 200 spots higher than him. The Swiss didn’t get the win, because David Goffin shut down Adrien Bossel to clinch the tie, but Laaksonen’s performance certainly raised a few eyebrows.
Sam Querrey, Lover of Love
Apparently the American found somebody who is “wife material” while appearing on the Bravo show “Millionaire Matchmaker.” Strange that Querrey, who so joyously went about his dance routines for the show, plays such tense, inhibited tennis most of the time. Maybe there's a lesson in all this hunting for love. Let your heart sing and dance, both off the court and on it.
The Zero: John Isner
There was one thing that the Americans could not afford to do this weekend in Glasgow, and John Isner did just that, and from a two sets to love lead, no less. Indoors, on a fast court, with a yawning, gaping lead, you’d think Isner would be a lock for this sort of mission. To ask a Top 20 player to defeat a journeyman on his favorite surface in a competition that he excels in is not too big of an ask. Which is why it’s particularly gut-wrenching that Isner couldn’t make it happen for the U.S.
For the record, Isner agrees with our assessment and basically gave himself zero status in press:
Top Tweets
1. Oh, yeah, Indian Wells, baby!
2. Brilliant, as in shield your eyes brilliant!
3. Is Leonardo Mayer crying for joy or because his LEGS HURT SO BAD!?
The Ultimate Anti-Bro: Andy Murray
The Scot got his buddy Dominic Inglot in some hot water when he outed him for having a “girl on the go” in Glasgow. Just watch…
Instagram of the Week: All hands on deck in an attempt to get the Monterrey final in on Sunday evening.
Hot Shot of the Week: This gorgeous, rollicking doubles point was the highlight of the weekend for the Americans.
Best Hero’s Welcome: Serbia: Fans flocked to see Novak Djokovic in Serbia, and they not only saw him practice, they also saw him take part in the tie-clinching doubles rubber on Saturday.
Studs and Duds
Gilles Simon battled past Jan-Lennard Struff in a fantastic battle in Frankfurt. Not only was Simon impressive in victory, the 24-year-old German showed a lot of potential in his Davis Cup debut… Viktor Troicki battled back from two sets down to stop Borna Coric in five sets in Kraljevo. Quietly, Troicki is emerging as a dark horse for the 2015 season… Kei Nishikori battled past Milos Raonic in the only matchup that featured two Top 6 players, winning yet another deciding set to push Canada to a fifth rubber… Bernard Tomic swept a pair of matches in Ostrava to finish off the Czechs in four... Vasek Pospisil came up with the goods, taking down Go Soeda in straight sets.