Final Tickets Punched for Davis Cup

Tennis news that you should know

By Mason Walling

It didn’t take Novak Djokovic much time to recover after losing the 2013 U.S. Open to Rafael Nadal last Monday, Sept. 9, in a tough four-setter in Flushing Meadows, New York.

On Sunday the 15th, Djokovic had an important Davis Cup matchup for his country of Serbia, playing against Milos Raonic of Canada.  Going into the match, the Canadian team had cushioned themselves with a 2-1 lead over the Serbs by performing well in doubles play on Saturday.  Djokovic was able to dismiss Raonic in straight sets 7-6 (1), 6-2, 6-2 to tie the series at two apiece.

Darko Vojinovic / AP

The fifth and deciding match was between Serbian Janko Tipsarevic and Canadian Vasek Pospisil.  The Serbian served for the match at 5-3 in the third set, but he lost four straight match points, and Pospisil sent the third into a tiebreaker.  In the end, Tipsarevic was able to hold him off 8-6 in the breaker to pull out the win and advance Serbia to the Davis Cup finals.

The Canadian had never even made a Davis Cup semifinal before, whereas the Serbs won the Cup in 2010.  Serbia will play for the Davis Cup final in their home country against the Czech Republic, Nov. 15-17.

It has also been announced that the 2014 Davis Cup will renew the rivalry of the United States versus Britain in the first round.  The two countries faced off in the first ever Davis Cup match in 1900.  Other first round matchups include:  Argentina vs. Italy, Switzerland vs. Serbia, Germany vs. Spain, and Japan vs. Canada. 

Also in the news this past week, previous world number nine Marin Cilic of Croatia has been suspended for nine months for violating the International Tennis Federation’s (ITF) doping regulations.  Cilic tested positive for a banned substance that he said he ingested inadvertently in glucose tablets at a tournament last spring in Munich.  He has been subsequently stripped of all prize money and ranking points accrued since the Munich tournament.  The now 24-year-old will not be eligible to play until after the 2014 Australian Open in January.