Both victories in the individual duels against Djere and Kecmanovic result in the victory over Serbia despite the absence of Alcaraz
Carlos Alcaraz wasn’t there, he was still recovering from the massive effort of the US Open, but it wasn’t necessary. Sergi Bruguera’s Spain cleared the first draw against Serbia on the fast track and lead Group B along with Canada, which defeated South Korea.
Spain risked it by giving rest to its number one, Alcaraz, who joined training on Tuesday but had yet to rest after winning the US Open on Sunday night and traveling to Spain on Monday itself. Time ran out against the Murcian, who, together with the captain, decided it was better to reserve efforts for the next two motos.
Without Alcaraz, Albert Ramos had to show his face, a last-minute solution because of the loss of Alejandro Davidovich, announced a few weeks ago. The Catalan did not fail in his seventh game in the competition, although he did need a real marathon to beat Laslo Djere 2-6, 7-6 (5), 7-5.
Ramos spent nearly three hours on the field and recovered from losing the first set and 0-3 against in the third set to take his first Davis win since 2018. The Serb’s cramps in the third set eased the Spaniard’s reaction, who was seen outside during several moments of the meeting. “In games like today you go through a lot of different emotions. There are times when it looks like you’re going to win and others when it’s impossible,” he said after the game.
Ramos’ victory paved the way for a Spain fearful of starting on the worst possible foot at Valencia’s Fuente de San Luis pavilion. Passing for the quarter-finals of the competition, to be played at the end of November, is expensive, and every point counts, so Ramos’ victory was a direct oxygen ball for Roberto Bautista, the next to hit the court.
The Castellón native, who was vital to Romania’s elimination in March and into the 2019 final when he played despite the recent death of his father, also had to recover from an early Serbian lead. Miomir Kecmanovic, the Serbian number one against the loss of Novak Djokovic, who was expelled from the tournament for personal reasons, started with a 3-1 advantage that he could not hold.
After Bautista lost a set point in the twelfth game, he did not miss the ‘tiebreak’. He also dominated in the second, but was more erratic with his serve and lost twice, giving Kecmanovic a chance to force another tiebreak, which also didn’t fail Bautista, who already has 11 wins in this competition (7-6 (5 ) and 7-6 (5)).
The point won against Serbia keeps Spain in the lead in Group B, along with Canada, who needed the doubles to beat South Korea, a priori the Cinderella of the group. Spain will face the Canadians next Friday, with the biggest threat being their number one Felix Auger-Aliassime, in singles. The other singles will be taken by Vasek Pospisil, number 141 in the world, and the two will pair up for the doubles, with the exception of last minute changes. A Spanish win could already seal passage to the knockout phase of the tournament, which will be played in Malaga from November 23 to 27. If all goes well, Alcaraz will be ready to take on the Canadians next Friday.
Source: La Verdad
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