Davis Cup 2022: India dominates Denmark on day 1, wins the playoffs

In the Davis Cup 2022 contest against Denmark, Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan averted three match points and proceeded to win their game.

Pritha Ghosh

Mar 6, 2022, 6:17 AM

Davis Cup 2022: India dominates Denmark on day 1, wins the playoffs

In the Davis Cup 2022 contest against Denmark, Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan averted three match points and proceeded to win their game. They upset Frederik Nielsen and Mikael Torpegaard of Denmark 6-7 (4-7), 6-4, 7-6(7-4) in a thrilling match. By securing this invincible 3-0 lead in the playoff encounter, India was able to preserve its spot in Davis Cup World Group I.

Boppana and Sharan were able to claw their way out of the grips of defeat after an almost two-hour battle. The nail-biting victory confirmed India's place in World Group I for the 2022 season. However, Denmark has been relegated to World Group II. On the first day, India had already taken a 2-0 lead. Yuki Bhambri and Ramkumar Ramanathan's performances were essential in this.

Read also: Davis Cup 2022: Full schedule and fixture

How exactly did India grab such a victory in Davis Cup 2022?

Ramkumar Ramanathan continued his undefeated run in the first singles match of the day. In a three-set struggle, Ramanathan overcame his Danish opponent Johannes Ingildsen. The Indian player, ranked 170th, came back from a set down to flip the tide in India's favour. Thus, the Indians won the match 5-7, 7-5, 10-7, extending their winning streak to 4-0. The young Indians of the Delhi Gymkhana Club once again put up an incredible battle to make this happen. Despite the fact that the Danes had already forfeited the tie and the match was essentially a dead rubber, the Indian tennis players' achievements cannot be overlooked.

Davis Cup 2022 | India beat Denmark | Sportzpoint.com
Source: Onmaronama

Read also: Davis Cup 2022: Historic Delhi Gymkhana to host Davis Cup tie after five decades

The historic victory over Denmark is the country's first in the Davis Cup since a 4-1 victory over Pakistan in 2019. After a 1-4 setback to Finland in 2021, the triumph keeps the nation's chances and hopes alive.

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Canada wins Davis Cup 2022 title for the first time in 109 years, defeats 28-time champion Australia

Canada won the Davis Cup 2022 tennis title for the first time on Sunday. Canada competed in the Davis Cup for the first time 109 years ago.

Payal Debnath

Nov 28, 2022, 10:36 AM

Canada won the Davis Cup 2022 tennis title for the first time on Sunday. Canada competed in the Davis Cup for the first time 109 years ago, defeating 28-time champions Australia in the final. World number six Felix Auger Aliassime handed Australia an unassailable 2-0 lead when he beat Australia's Alex de Minaur 6-3-6-4 in the second singles.

Also read: New ATP Men's Tennis World Rankings

Canada wins Davis Cup 2022 title for the first time in 109 years, defeats 28-time champion Australia | Sportz Point
Image- Times of India

Felix Auger Aliassime said "The emotions are tough to describe, Denis and I grew up together, dreaming of these types of stage, dreaming of winning the Davis Cup. It's a great moment for myself and for the country."

Felix hit 16 winners while Alex could only hit five. Earlier, Denis Shapovalov defeated Thanasi Kokkinakis 6-2, 6-4. Aliassime described the Davis Cup 2022 win as a dream come true. Canada had earlier reached the final in 2019 when they lost to Rafael Nadal's Spain team. Shapovalov and Felix also helped Canada win the Junior Davis Cup in 2015.

Canada made its debut in the Davis Cup title game in 2019, where Roberto Bautista Agut and Rafael Nadal defeated Auger Aliassime and Shapovalov, respectively. Canada came very close to giving their nations their first Davis Cup victory that year. But this week, they made sure they end up on the winning side, as Shapovalov beat Thanasi Kokkinakis 6-2, 6-4 in the first set of the tie to give Canada the lead.

Shapovalov showed control by staying solid on the returns. Establishing himself quickly in the rallies to put the world No. 95 under pressure, he broke four times and sealed the victory after 90 minutes. He read Kokkinakis' serve throughout the match.

Also read: Top 10 highest-paid tennis players currently

Canada also trounced Germany and Italy during a spectacular week. In the semi-finals, Australia defeated Croatia to advance to their first Davis Cup final since 2003. With a 60–27 record. While Auger-Aliassime completed her best season ever. The 22-year-old had a stellar year, winning four titles at the Tour level and helping Canada win the ATP Cup.

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Croatia beat Spain to enter Davis Cup semi-finals

Veteran Marin Cilic came from behind to defeat Spain's Pablo Carreno Busta to send Croatia into the Davis Cup semifinals

Payal Debnath

Nov 24, 2022, 10:24 AM

Croatia beat Spain to enter Davis Cup semi-finals

Veteran Marin Cilic came from behind to defeat Spain's Pablo Carreno Busta in a three-hour match to send Croatia into the Davis Cup semifinals.

Also read: ATP Finals: Novak Djokovic became champion for the sixth time, equaled Federer's record

Croatia beat Spain to enter Davis Cup semi-finals | Sportz Point
Image- Arab News

Cilic came back after losing the first set in the second set but was trailing 1–4 at one point in the deciding set tiebreaker. It was here that Cilic put his experience to use, winning 5-7, 6-3, 7-6 (5) to give Croatia an unassailable 2-0 lead over Spain. The match lasted three hours and 13 minutes.

Earlier, Borna Coric had given Croatia the lead by upset Roberto Bautista Agut 6-4, 7-6(4) in the first singles match. This is Croatia's first win over Spain in Davis Cup. He will face Australia in the semi-finals.

Cilic, 34, who made his Davis Cup debut back in 2006, dropped the first set, gave up a break in the decider and was 1/4 down in the tiebreak before triumphing after three hours and 13 minutes on court.

His 20 aces helped alleviate the damage caused by 15 double faults as the 10,000-strong home crowd at the Palacio de Deportes was stunned into silence by Croatia who were runners-up to Russia in the 2021 final.

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However, he admitted that the absence of US Open champion Alcaraz and 22-time Grand Slam title winner Nadal played into the hands of Croatia who had lost all of their three previous Davis Cup meetings with Spain.

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Davis Cup 2022: Australia qualifies for three consecutive finals

During the Davis Cup 2022 deciding qualifying singles round, Thanasi Kokkinakis defeated Zsombor Piros 6-4, 6-4.

Pritha Ghosh

Mar 6, 2022, 7:11 AM

The tale of Thanasi Kokkinakis' resurrection from tennis obscurity has a new chapter. He promised to return before the Australian Open and, true to his word, he led Australia to the third consecutive Davis Cup 2022 finals with a stunning victory against Hungary. During the critical fifth match at Ken Rosewell Stadium, Kokkinakis defeated Zsombor Piros 6-4, 6-4 in the deciding qualifying singles round.

It was an emotional moment for Kokkinakis who won his first match for Australia since defeating Britain's Dan Evans back in 2015.

Thanasi Kokkinakis Completes Comeback, Fires Australia Into Davis Cup 2022 Finals  | Sportzpoint.com
Source: Tennis365

Alex De Minaur set the tone with a 7-6, 6-4 victory over Marton Fucsovics before Kokkinakis secured the triumph.

Read more: Davis Cup 2022: Full schedule and fixture

What does Kokkinakis have to say after such a glorioius David Cup 2022 success?

"I had full confidence in the guys. Demon's our leader, unbelievable from him and I had to do my part. To play a fifth rubber at home, it's incredible. I get nervous but knowing these guys come out here and give it their all every time. It makes me want to perform," he expressed.

Thanasi Kokkinakis Completes Comeback, Fires Australia Into Davis Cup 2022 Finals  | Sportzpoint.com
Source: ATP Tour

Following a long time of injury, Kokkinakis has returned to form, winning the ATP tournament in Adelaide in January and the Australian Open doubles with Nick Kyrgios.

"I couldn't have asked for more to start the year. Davis Cup's so different – in those ATP tournaments, you're playing for yourself. Having this support is unreal," concluded Kokkinakis.

Read more: Davis Cup 2022: India dominates Denmark on day 1, wins the playoffs

The group stage of the finals will take place in September, with the knockouts following in late November.

Greece's national team has also qualified for the Davis Cup play-offs' 20th semifinal round. Stefanos' brother, Petros Tsitsipas, was the one to push the team through with a 4-6,6-4,6-4 victory over Jamaican Rowland Phillips.

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Davis Cup 2022: Full schedule and fixture

Davis Cup 2022 is all set to get underway on 4 March and 5 March. A total of 116 tennis players from 24 countries are participating in it.

Shreya Ghosh

Mar 3, 2022, 7:31 AM

Davis Cup 2022 is all set to get underway on 4 March and 5 March. A total of 116 tennis players from 24 countries are participating in this prestigious tournament. Davis Cup 2022 qualifiers will occur in different locations globally.

Davis Cup 2022: Full schedule and fixture | SportzPoint.com
Image Credit- Sports Finding

Read also: Felix Auger-Aliassime clinches his first ATP title in Rotterdam

The coming weekend will witness 12 Qualifiers and the winners will book a ticket to the finals, starting later this year. Finals will see 16 nations clashing for the title. The 16 nations consist of 2 wildcards Great Britain and Serbia, 12 winners of the qualifiers, and finalists from the last edition.

Croatia has already confirmed its name in the Davis Cup 2022 Finals. Though the Russian Tennis Federation was the defending champion, the International Tennis Federation (ITF) banned them after the invasion of Ukraine. International Tennis Federation will later announce the country to qualify in the vacant place.

The 12 winning nations from the qualifiers will directly join the World 1 team. On the other hand, the remaining 12 teams to lose from the qualifiers will join the World 2 team.

Read also: Juan Martin Del Potro: an emotional farewell to the Argentinian sensation

WORLD GROUP II, PLAY-OFF

FIRST ROUND PLAY-OFFS: 4 March, 5 March

  • China, P.R. vs Ireland
  • Dominican Republic vs India
  • Thailan vs Latvia
  • Guatemala vs Chinese Taipei
  • Indonesia vs Venezuela
  • Estonia vs Pacific Oceania
  • Egypt vs Cyprus
  • Greece vs Jamaica
  • Monaco vs Morocco
  • Bulgaria vs Paraguay
  • Zimbabwe vs El Salvador
  • Benin vs Hong Kong, China

QUALIFIERS

FIRST-ROUND: 4 March, 5 March

  • France vs Ecuador
  • Spain vs Romania
  • Finland vs Belgium
  • USA vs Colombia
  • Netherlands vs Canada
  • Brazil vs Germany
  • Slovakia vs Italy
  • Australia vs Hungary
  • Norway vs Kazakhstan
  • Sweden vs Japan
  • Argentina vs Czech Republic
  • Korea Republic vs Austria

WORLD GROUP I, PLAY-OFF

FIRST-ROUND PLAY-OFFS: 4 March, 5 March

  • Chile vs Sloveia
  • India vs Denmark
  • Uzbekistan vs Turkey
  • Portugal vs Poland
  • Tunisia vs Bosnia and Herzegovina
  • Israel vs South Africa
  • New Zealnd vs Uruguay
  • Ukraine vs Barbados
  • Pakistan vs Lithuania
  • Peru vs Bolivia
  • Switzerland vs Lebanon
  • Mexico vs Belarus
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Davis Cup 2022: Historic Delhi Gymkhana to host Davis Cup tie after five decades

India faces Denmark in the Davis Cup 2022, which returns to the legendary Delhi Gymkhana Club (DGC) after a nearly five-decade absence.

Pritha Ghosh

Feb 26, 2022, 10:00 AM

India faces Denmark in the Davis Cup 2022, which returns to the legendary Delhi Gymkhana Club (DGC) after a nearly five-decade absence. After three years, India has been given a home tie. On the 4th and 5th of March, India will confront Denmark in a World Group playoff I encounter.

Historic Delhi Gymkhana to host Davis Cup tie after five decades! | Tennis  News - Times of India
Source: Times of India

It will be the first encounter between India and Denmark since the visiting team won 3-2 in September 1984. The only other occasion both teams met was in the quarter-finals of the 1927 World Cup, where Denmark stunned India (5-0). However, to date, India has reached the Davis Cup finals three times: in 1966, 1974, and 1987.

Read more: Davis Cup 2022: Nick Kyrgios not picked in the Australian team

Rohit Rajpal and Anil Jain's statement

Rohit Rajpal, the country's non-playing captain, spoke on the Indian team's preparation. As per his words, "Denmark are a very good side. We have been preparing well for our matches and now we just need to focus on our strengths. That will be our strategy going forward."

Delhi Gymkhana to host Davis Cup 2022 tie after five decades | Sportzpoint.com
Source: Outlook India

Anil Jain, president of the All India Tennis Association (AITA) and head of the Davis Cup Organising Committee (OC), stated that the tournament will assist the sport of tennis to acquire more recognition in India. In his words, "Davis Cup is a prestigious event and we are glad to host it after three years on home soil. This is a great chance for India to showcase its talent. We believe that the conduct of the event will help tennis reach every nook and corner of the country."

Read more: ATP Rankings: Daniil Medvedev is now the World No.1 tennis player

India's squad for Davis Cup 2022

  1. Prajnesh Gunneswaran
  2. Yukti Bhambri
  3. Rohan Bopanna
  4. Ramkumar Ramanathan
  5. Divij Sharan

Denmark's squad for Davis Cup 2022

  1. Mikael Torpegaard
  2. Johannes Ingildsen
  3. Christian Sigsgaard
  4. Elmer Moller
  5. Frederik Lochte Nielsen
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