Australian defeats Switzerland 3-0 in a brilliant day in Manchester to progress to the Davis Cup Finals in November.
Manchester, Great Britain, 16 September 2023 | AAP / Tennis Australia
Australia’s Davis Cup team has produced a stellar display to whitewash Switzerland in a must-win tie and roar into the quarterfinals of the men’s world team competition.
The team, captained by Lleyton Hewitt, knew they would guarantee its ticket to the eight-team knock-out finals in November with a 3-0 win over Switzerland in the final group stage tie in Manchester.
Thanasi Kokkinakis, Alex de Minaur and the doubles pairing of Max Purcell and Matt Ebden duly obliged with scintillating performances.
“I’m extremely proud of the boys – the effort, the backs-against-the-wall motto of being able to fight our way out of it and see the big picture,” said Hewitt of the Australian team, which took a 1-1 record into the Saturday tie after a loss to Great Britain and victory over France earlier in the week.
“They were able to do it and they deserve it. ”
It means Australia, who finished runners-up last year, will return to Malaga in November, with eyes set on going one better than last year.
A winner of 28 Davis Cup titles overall, Australia aims to lift the title for the first time in 20 years since Hewitt led them to victory as a player.
“We gave ourselves a great opportunity last year and the boys got a taste for it,” said Hewitt on court in Manchester. “We want to try and push a little bit harder and see if we can climb that mountain and I feel like I’ve got the boys that are able to do that.”
Hewitt’s decision to keep faith in Kokkinakis paid off handsomely as the Adelaide powerhouse – who suffered a three-set loss to Great Britain’s Jack Draper on Wednesday – defeated Dominic Stricker 6-3 7-5 in the opening rubber.
“I had full belief that Thanasi was going to get the job done today,” said Hewitt. “It was a matter of him getting mentally and physically ready.”
> READ: Davis Cup experience counts for Thanasi Kokkinakis
Australian No.1, De Minaur, then continued his proud record in the green and gold, outplaying Marc-Andrea Huesler, who was named for Switzerland ahead of three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka.
De Minaur’s 6-4 6-3 win over Huesler sealed Australia’s second overall victory of the week following their 2-1 win over France.
“It’s something we don’t take for granted ……
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Tennis.com.au – Tennis Australia…