When Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram secured victory in a tough doubles match on Saturday in Delray Beach, it seemed the U.S. team had the upper hand in the second round of the Davis Cup qualifiers versus the Czech Republic. Yet, Jiri Lehecka and Jakub Mensik had already planned their counterattack.
Lehecka unexpectedly defeated Taylor Fritz, who is ranked fifth in the ATP PIF rankings, preserving the Czech Republic’s chance to advance. Later, Mensik sealed the 3-2 victory for the Czech team by overcoming Frances Tiafoe late at night.
During a long day in Florida, play was interrupted due to prolonged lightning storms. When Lehecka stepped onto the home court at the Delray Beach Open, he was aware he needed to break his 0-4 ATP head-to-head record against Fritz. Fresh from reaching the US Open quarterfinals, Lehecka accomplished this by upsetting the American Fritz 6-4, 3-6, 6-4.
Fritz and Lehecka engaged in a fierce battle—less than two months ago, Fritz had defeated Lehecka in a deciding tiebreak in Toronto. But Lehecka kept up relentless pressure on the American leader, earning 17 break points and converting 3 of them to level the overall score at 2-2.
This result gave Mensik the chance to become the hero—earlier this year, he captured the ATP 1000 Masters title at the Miami Open in Florida. The 23-year-old comfortably defeated Tiafoe 6-1, 6-4 around midnight, leading his national team into the quarterfinals.
Paris Olympic silver medalists Krajicek and Ram had earlier fought hard to beat the pairing of Tomas Machac and Mensik 7-6(6), 5-7, 6-4, giving the U.S. a 2-1 lead.
Countries that have advanced to the Davis Cup quarterfinals include defending champions Italy, the Czech Republic, Argentina, Austria, Germany, and France.
Links
Contact
App
