Slovak tennis players won the 1st World Group of the Davis Cup over Greece 3:1. The decisive third point was taken care of by Alex Molčan, who defeated Stefanos Tsitsipas, the fifth player in the world ranking, 7:6, 4:6, 6:3. Slovakia thus advanced to next year’s qualification for the final tournament of the Davis Cup.
True, TASR 17.09.2023 12:27, updated: 16:42
Photo: Facebook/STZ
Alex Molčan achieved one of the most valuable victories of his career in Greece.
Molčan faced a break point in the third game of the duel with Tsitsipas, but he parried it and in the next few minutes he was an even opponent for the favorite. At 3:3, thanks to quality returns, he broke the Greek’s serve, but Tsitsipas immediately controlled with a rebreak, and the fate of the first set was finally decided by a tiebreak. In it, Tsitsipas led 5:3, but Molčan turned it to 6:5 and converted the second set point in a row at 7:6.
The leader of the Greek team, who had a difficult doubles match, quickly shook himself and immediately took Molčan’s serve in the opening game of the second set. Tsitsipas tried to shorten the exchanges and go to the net more often. However, more and more unforced errors were added to his account.
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He won the fourth game despite four double faults, but lost his serve at 3:2 after Molčan’s winning return. The best Slovak singles player made it 4:3 and had a break point in the eighth game. However, Tsitsipas turned him away, broke Molčan in the next game and forced a decisive action. He converted the fifth set point on his own serve.
In the third act, both players won their serve confidently until the score was 4:3. In the eighth game, Molčan had two break points, converted the first one and served to win the match. Thanks to three aces and a winning forehand, he brought the duel to a winning end and won one of the most valuable scalps in his career. He handed Tsitsipas his first ever Davis Cup singles loss.
“I am very happy that we won a difficult match in Greece and I contributed to the triumph with two points. Great praise also goes to Zeli and Luki, who played a great doubles game. I started against Stefanos with maximum concentration. The important thing was that I was mentally strong in the key moments. I am satisfied with the performed performance,” stated Molčan in the first interview directly on the court.
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Even before Molčan’s decisive victory, Lukáš Klein and Igor Zelenay were able to win in doubles over the Greek sibling pair Tsitsipas 6:3, 6:7, 6:3.
The beginning of the match was good for the Slovak tandem in doubles, when they broke the serve of Stefanos Tsitsipas in the opening game and turned the advantage of the fast break into a win in the first set.
Both Zelenay and Klein had a high first serve percentage and returned much better. Petros Tsitsipas had a nervous impression on the court, he was struggling with his serve, which the Slovak pair took advantage of and converted the second set point in the ninth game after Zelenaya’s winning backhand.
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In the second act, the Greeks changed their position on the return. Stefanos Tsitsipas stood on the forehand side and in the first and third games the home pair worked their way to a break point, but Klein and Zelenay held serve.
The Slovaks also managed a game at 4:4, in which the Greeks equalized from 0:40 to a tie, and the fate of the second set was decided by a tiebreak. In it, Zelenay and Klein led 3:1, but the Greeks turned around the unfavorable development and after a quality return by Petros Tsitsipas converted the first set point at 6:5.
In the decisive act, all actors sovereignly won their serve until the score was 3:3. In Tilden’s game, the Slovaks reached a break point with a serve from Stefanos Tsitsipas, which they converted after Zelenaya’s exclusive lob and brought the match to a successful end. In the ninth game, they used the very first match point.
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“We already knew before the match in Greece that the point from the doubles could be crucial in the final calculation. I believe that we will bring it to a successful end and win participation in the qualification for next year’s final tournament,” said Zelenay in the post-match interview.
On Saturday, Klein had to scratch the duel with Stefanos Tsitsipas due to cramps, but he got himself together in the doubles. “The third set was very even for a long time. At 3:3 we managed to break and from that moment our game was again at a high level. We made it to the end in one piece,” praised the younger of the Slovak duo.
duel of the 1st world group of the Davis Cup:
Greece – SLOVAKIA 1:3
Alexandros Skorilas – Alex Molčan 1:6, 1:6
Stefanos Tsitsipas – Lukáš Klein 6:7 (3), 7:6 (5), 4:0 – scratch
Petros Tsitsipas, Stefanos Tsitsipas – Igor Zelenay, Klein 3:6, 7:6 (5), 3:6
Stefanos Tsitsipas – Molčan 6:7 (6), 7:5, 3:6
2023-09-17 14:42:00
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