The Argentines Máximo González and Andrés Molteni They defeated the couple made up of the Kazakhs Aleksander Nedovyesov-Dmitry Popko in doubles and put the series for the 2024 Davis Cup Qualifiers at 2-1, that is being played on the brick dust of the Rosario Jockey Club.
The Argentine duo came back from an adverse start with character and won 6-7 (3), 6-4 and 6-0, in 2 hours 42 minutes of play.
The break of the party for “Machi” and Molteni It came in the fifth game of the second set, when after losing the first set in the tie break and going down a break in the second, they recovered that break and won their serve to tie it at 3-3. From there, the Argentine duo began to show their best tennis, breaking at 5-4 and closing the set in their favor.
That good level continued in the third set, where the national couple gave the Kazakhs no chance to react and won by a resounding 6-0.
“We were nervous about going 1-1 and having to give Argentina this point. I think that in the first set we had many more chances to break them, and in the tie break they made the difference. In the second set, when they had the break, the public played a key role in getting us up and being able to break. We feel a lot of relief and joy for giving this point to Argentina,” he said. Molteni, number 13 in the world in doubles.
On the side of Gonzalez, analyzed: “In the beginning it was more heart than tennis. Then, when we started to feel better, the best tennis started to come out. We started to play better. When we turned the second set around and started with the break in the third, they went down a little. I think they found it very difficult to turn it around. I am happy to be able to give this point to Argentina. At 1-1, the doubles point was key. “This is going to help Fran (Cerúndolo) get out on the field more freely.”
In the run-up to the doubles, in a last-minute decision, the Asian team decided to preserve its main player, Timofei Skatov (278th), who will directly play the fourth point with Francisco Cerúndolo (22nd), first racket of the “albiceleste” team. “.
Skatov, responsible for equalizing the key 1-1 after their victory against Tomás Martín Etcheverry (28°), ended up overwhelmed by the intense heat of the previous day, conditions that were not repeated this Sunday, fortunately for the players.
Rosario woke up today with a temperature of 22 degrees, about 15 less than the 37 on Saturday, which brought the wind chill to close to 40 on the field in the Fisherton neighborhood.
If a decisive fifth point is necessary, they will encourage you at the end of the day Tomás Etcheverry with Popko (338°), who would thus add his second commitment on the same day.
Argentina competes in the 2024 Qualifiers with the objective of being among the 16 countries that will play in the Finals in September, divided into four zones of four. From there those classified for the Final 8 will emerge, scheduled for November, after the closing of the ATP calendar.
The team of “Wizard” Guillermo Coria They made it to this stage last year, after beating Lithuania 4-0 at the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis Club.
The current one is the third confrontation between Argentina and Kazakhstan after the crossings in 2011 and 2017.
In the first series, played at Parque Roca, the Argentine team won 5-0 and in the second, as a visitor, the “albiceleste” team fell 3-1, which determined the relegation after 16 years in the World Group.
Source: Ambito
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