The French end the Spaniard dream of achieving three successive Davis Cup titles
In a historic win, the French Davis Cup team defeated the defending champions Spain in three consecutive rubbers of their quarter-final tie. France has met Spain in the Davis Cup in six other showdowns, the first being in 1923, the final of the Europe group, in which France defeated the Spanish team by 3-2 at Deauville, France. Since then, in all their showdowns in 1963, 1970, 1971, 1972 and 2004, the Spanish side have dominated the French in the men’s premier International tennis event. The latest victory for the Spanish side against the French was in 2004, where the former beat the latter in the finals by 4-1 to clinch the Davis Cup for the second time since 2000.
This is the first win of the French team against Spain since 1923. The Spanish team has dominated the Davis Cup for a decade (since 2000), clinching four Davis cup wins in 2000, 2004, 2008 and 2009. This historic win for France also destroyed the Spanish dream of winning the Davis Cup a fifth time. This decisive victory takes the French team to the semi-finals of the World Group of the Davis Cup 2010. Spain’s Davis Cup team also holds the record winning streak of 19 ties on clay.
The quarter-final showdown started on 9th of July at Grande Halle d'Auvergne, Clermont-Ferrand, France. In the first rubber, the strong 12th ranked David Ferrer played the young inexperienced Gael Monfils. Monfils played with passion, and in his aggressive game took the first set 7-6. In the second set, Ferrer seemed off balance and lost 6-2. He scored a comeback in the next two sets with 6-4 and 7-5. Monfils regained his composure and easily took the decisive set by 6-4 to score the first victory of the tie against the Spanish team.
The crowd was triumphant as the second tie started, cheering and raising the morale of their home team. It was as if the French knew this is the time where history would be rewritten. As the second rubber singles match started, the left handed 10th ranked Fernando Verdasco looked confident to win the rubber. Michael Llodra from the French side however, played the rubber with presence of mind. He played both aggressively and cautiously to root out the Spaniard by 6-7, 6-4, 6-3, 7-6.
For the third game, the French crowd was high and lifting the spirits of their team. The doubles rubber, 3rd for this tie, was played between the French pair of Julien Benneteau/Michael Llodra and Spanish Feliciano Lopez/Fernando Verdasco. The French resistance was tough, as Lopez lost his first serve to the French side in the first game. The eighth game put the Spaniards in a set tie over the French when Benneteau lost the serve. During the whole tie, this was the moment when everyone thought that the Spanish side had staged a comeback and would prove to be a tough nut to crack in the French dominant tie. After losing to the French side 6-1 6-2 in the first two sets, Spain took the third set 6-7.
The fourth set was crucial for Spain, and the tension was high on both the captains’ faces. French Guy Forget and Spanish Albert Costa were constantly encouraging their teams to keep the spirits high. Saving three crucial break points for the Spanish side, Lopez put his side back into the play in the sixth game. Lopez’s 5-5 serve did great for his team’s confidence, and it seemed that Spain’s lost confidence was back. But the French breakthrough came when Verdasco, after the change of sides, double-faulted to give the French a lead of 4-2. After that, the French serving weapon Benneteau sealed the victory for the French side with a serve of 7-5.
The Spanish team came after beating Switzerland in the first round by 4-1. Despite the absence of the Spanish big gun Nadal, much was expected from the ITF No. 1 ranked side, keeping in view their previous Davis Cup performances. It sure was a historic day for the French side, which beat the Spaniards for the first time after 1923 at the Davis Cup. They had a great advantage of home ground as well as their aggressive play. The French side will play either Russia or Argentina in the semi-finals, depending upon the outcome of their tie, currently scored at 1-2 respectively.
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