The United States confirmed their victory over the Czech Republic 4-1 on the first day of the United Cupthe new mixed team competition taking place in Australia.
This Friday, Frances Tiafoe put the definitive 3-1 after abandoning Tomas Macchac due to an injury to the right ankle in the second set of their singles match.
Tiafoe won the first set 6-3 at Sydney’s Ken Rosewall Arena, but trailed 4-2 in the second against his Czech rival when Macchac’s injury ended the match.
After trying to parry a Tiafoe forehand, Macac managed to stand up but, after consulting a doctor and his team, he decided he could no longer continue.
“We were in the middle of a battle. It’s annoying that this happened to me. You don’t want to see that. I hope I can recover for the Australian Open,” Tiafoe said.
The Americans entered the second day of the five-game encounter leading 2-0 after Thursday’s singles wins over Taylor Fritz and Madison Keys. But the two-time Wimbledon champion Petra Kvitova saved seven set points to defeat world number 3 Jessica Pegula 7-6(6) 6-4 in the first game on Friday and keep the Czechs with a chance to win.
“We are still struggling. I think USA is a good team with good players in the team.. We are not really favorites here, but every game, every point, we fight. That’s the spirit of our team” said Kvitova.
Trailing 5-1 in the tie-break, Kvitova saved three set points before grabbing her eighth set point at 7-6 and finally converting to seal the set. After breaking away in the first set, Kvitova broke Pegula twice to take a quick 3-0 lead.
In the other qualifying rounds of the morning session, Greece lived up to their top seed status by beating Bulgaria 4-1 in Perth (Western Australia).
After the victories of Stefanos Tsitsipas against Grigor Dimitrov by 4-6, 6-2 and 7-6 (4), and Despina Papamichail against Isabella Shinikova by 3-6, 6-4 and 6-1 , This Friday Maria Sakkari completed the Greek victory with a 6-3, 6-2 victory over Viktoriya Tomova.
Kuzmanov got the only point for Bulgaria after defeating Pervolarakis 6-1, 6-1. Tsitsipas and Sakkari put the final 4-1 in their 6-4, 6-4 win over Topalova and Andreev.
And Matteo Berrettini made a strong start to the season to help give Italy a 3-2 win over Brazil in Brisbane.. The Italian player beat Brazilian number 1 Thiago Monteiro 6-4 7-6 (7) to give her country a 2-1 lead, and Lucia Bronzetti sealed the Group E match by beating Laura Pigossi 6 -0 and 6-2.
“Pretty happy I’d say. It had been a while since I played my last singles match so I didn’t know what to expect. I think the level is quite high. I’m happy with my performance, but obviously when you play in this kind of competition the most important thing is to get the win and bring a point for the team and for that I’m happier” Berrettini stated.
Brazil made up the final score with its mixed doubles victory. Stefani and Matos beat Berrettini and Rosatello 6-4, 6-7(4), 10-4.
Source: La Verdad
I’m Robert Maynard, and I am a passionate journalist with experience in sports writing. For the last few years, I have been writing for Today Times Live. My main focus has been on sports-related stories and features. With my strong background in journalism and extensive knowledge of the industry, I am able to provide readers with well-crafted pieces that are both informative and engaging.
