Struff prioritized Germany over Canada

Jan Lennard Struffdropped to 152nd place in the world rankings after a long injury to his right leg, gave Germany the first point of his attachment Davis Cup quarterfinal against Canada by beating Denis Shapovalov18 in the world, of 6-3, 4-6 and 7-6(2) at the José María Martín Carpena Sports Palace in Malaga.

On a track made to measure for its ultra-fast surface, Struff endured the ups and downs of his rival’s game and mood, breaking a racket that angered his own mistakes and stirred the stands. The two players are old acquaintances who have met eight times, with five wins for the German. It’s six o’clock.

The German tried to win his first match point at the net, at 5-4, but couldn’t find the final volley and, after saving four break points, surrendered in the fifth. He had one more chance that ‘Shapo’ solved with loot. In the tiebreaker the initiative is always Struff’swho scored four consecutive points and closed out the game.

Struff achieved his best ATP ranking of 29th in 2020, but in June of this year he dropped out of the top 100 due to injury. In the group stage before the last eight in Malaga, they won all three of their matches and in Malaga they continued their good run in the team competition.

Germany and Canada have never met in the Davis Cup, which the Germans have won three times, most recently in 1993, and the Canadians have not. The loss of Alexander Zverev through injury has put the Germans as the team with the worst prospects in this final stage, the only one without a player in the world’s top 60. But Struff shattered those predictions.

According to the assignments announced by the captains, the second point is disputed by Oscar Otte65 from ATP, and Felix Auger-Aliassime, sixth. In case of resorting to a doubles match, they will play it Kevin Krawietz/Tim Puetz of Germany and Vasek Pospisil/Denis Shapovalov of Canada, although changes may be introduced until the last moment. The winner of the tie will face Italy in the semifinals.