By Chris Oddo | Sunday July 17, 2016
A trio of unsung heroes led their sides into the Davis Cup semifinals in emotional fashion over the weekend.
Photo Source: Srdjan Stevanovic
A trio of largely unheralded players brought their teams one step closer to the 2016 Davis Cup crown over the weekend. It’s a common theme for Davis Cup these days: when stars vacate the premises, lesser-knowns rise to the occasion, capitalizing on their opportunities to shine on a big stage.
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This weekend it was Great Britain’s 21-year-old Kyle Edmund, who filled the unfillable shoes of Andy Murray; it was Federico Delbonis of Argentina, a powerful southpaw, who brought Argentina past Italy; it was Lucas Pouille of France, backing up his Wimbledon success with an emotional, tie-changing victory on Friday in Trinec against the Czechs.
Casual fans keep calling for change in Davis Cup, many more savvy fans and pundits do as well, but tennis die-hards drop the debate on Davis Cup weekends in order to keep embracing the passion of the competition and reveling in the success of the unlikely heroes that the event allows for.
The format is far from perfect, the detractors have their points, and yet there is something about Davis Cup drama that lifts the spirits of tennis fans worldwide without fail—no matter who competes.
“I play with my heart, all my forces that I have,” said an elated Delbonis after defeating Fabio Fognini in a four-set battle in Pesaro, Italy on Sunday. It was the 25-year-old’s second singles victory of the weekend. Delbonis, a frighteningly powerful lefty who has yet to scratch the surface of his potential on the ATP Tour, opened the tie with a four-set win over Andreas Seppi on Friday. The soft-spoken Delbonis knows the other side of the equation as well. He lost two singles rubbers in last year’s semifinals at Brussels.
His nation has had its heart broken in Davis Cup more often than not, but the dream never dies and Argentina’s players soldier on with their eternal quest to finally bring the cup home.
Argentina will head to Great Britain this September to face a defending champion British squad that proved it could win this weekend in Belgrade without it’s one-man show and fearless leader Andy Murray. The reason? A rising force named Kyle Edmund.
“The fact that I put together two good performances in a tie, I’m really happy with it,” Edmund, who took out Janko Tipsarevic on Friday and iced the tie for the British on Sunday when he defeated Dusan Lajovic, told DavisCup.com’s Craig Gabriel.
The 21-year-old is playing at a career-high ranking of 67. By the looks of things he’s poised to go higher.
Edmund, like Delbonis, was stymied by the Belgians in 2015. He squandered a two sets to love lead against David Goffin in the first rubber of the final last season, but Murray helped rally the Brits to the title despite Edmund’s loss.
But to win two singles rubbers on the road on red clay is quite an achievement for Edmund—and a shot of redemption, too.
“We needed Kyle to really step up this weekend and boy has he done that,” said British captain Leon Smith. “He’s been absolutely terrific… And he’s been getting stronger physically, and to come out and win two best-of-five sets over three days is a testament to the hard work that he and his team have been doing.”
In Trinec, the French were facing a possible 2-0 deficit against the Czechs when Lucas Pouille asserted himself with a magnificent win over Jiri Vesely in his Davis Cup debut.
Under the most difficult of circumstances, with the Nice tragedy weighing heavily on the collective French psyche, Pouille mustered a courageous effort to bring France level after a trying Friday.
A loss could have been disastrous for Les Blues. As it turned out, the win was the spark that pulled them through. After France won the doubles point, Jo-Wilfried Tsonga finished the tie with a victory over Vesely to bring France its first win on Czech soil in 90 years.
France awaits either the U.S. or Croatia in a semifinal that will be played on the road again.
No matter who they face, France knows it has another weapon in Pouille to go with its already deep talent pool. “It was perfect, I am really happy,” French captain Yannick Noah said of Pouille’s victory. “We have a new generation that came into the locker room. It gives a really different dimension to our team. The fact that they won will give them so much confidence. I hope they keep playing like this."