It seems that there are no impossibilities for Spain and for Feliciano López in the Davis Cup, but the final outcome of the tie against Russia was a hard blow after having qualified for the quarterfinals so, so close … What seemed like a Miracle at first became more than a possibility later and disappointment finally came. Of course, nothing can be blamed for a group that has had to overcome one misfortune after another. Everything was against Sergi Bruguera’s team, framed in a group with Russia, the best team of the tournament because it has two “top 5” in its ranks; without Rafa Nadal, who said a long time ago that this time he would not be able to be when having to recover from the foot injury that has had him stopped since August; without Roberto Bautista, already injured in Madrid; Without the sensation Carlos Alcaraz, who tested positive for covid a day before debuting at just 18 years old. Against all that he fought and he did it without everything else … But with Feliciano López, who insisted on offering resistance until he died of exhaustion at the last moment. Russia won the decisive doubles, knocked out Spain and broke the feat of the 40-year-old tennis player.
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40 years? Yes, the same as Roger Federer, and there he continues despite the fact that he is no longer among the top 100 in the ranking and has spent most of the year playing Challengers, tournaments, let’s say, second-rate. Why continue at that age? He, a tennis player who has the record for consecutive appearances in Grand Slams (75, from Roland Garros 2002 to the Australian Open 2021 without failure), who has won Queens, five Davis Cups … Why? And Feli responds: «To live games like these». Playing as a team, defending Spain … It is a situation that puts him and takes him beyond what he seems capable of giving.
“Come on, let’s all cheer on Feliciano López,” said the most spirited sector of the stands in the worst moments of the game against Rublev. The anger of the fans for the hours of waiting in the street until the end of the tie between Kazakhstan and Canada. Tennis is a sport without a fixed duration and sometimes what happens happens. The fact is that Feli was encouraged little by little and, above all, when the serve began to work. He started by losing it and then the young Russian already had much of the work done and won the first set of run. But as soon as he gained confidence with the service, Feli was also another to the rest and from the resistance he went on to dominate with the break in the sixth game of the second set: a volleyball, the help of the tape on a ball … This is how he achieved the break and later, to confirm the tie at one to partials, he had to save up to three break balls. But morale was high and he went to the net even with second serves. And he even got direct serves with that second.
Rublev’s theoretical favoritism was fading. Feliciano has been in a thousand battles and his rival sometimes goes crazy when things don’t go well for him. As soon as he left a hole, the Toledo man slipped through. A backhand cut and forward, a tennis from another time against a modern player who could not pass the giant who was in the attack zone. What a way to volley.
Then came Carreño’s logical defeat against Medvedev, although the man from Gijón resisted in the second set (6-2 and 7-6 [7-3]), but the difficult job seemed done: you had to win one of the two singles and entrust yourself to the doubles, a meeting that in principle was more balanced. It was an all or nothing for the Bruguera and not so much for the Russians, who by taking a set were inside. And there Feliciano López also appeared together with specialist Marcel Granollers for the fight against Karatsev and Rublev (6-4, 2-6 and 6-4). In pairs this sport seems different: you have to be fast hands and do not miss opportunities. Spain’s break in the first set came with a parallel rest from Feli that made him look at the stands like: “Clap your hands, please.” The Madrid Arena was already a party, despite the hours. Russia responded by taking the set they needed, but did not relax afterwards. He could have stopped, but he stayed in the game and in the tenth game he broke Feliciano’s serve and the hopes of Spain. The triumph of the national team would have also left out Djokovic’s Serbia, who seized on life at the last moment and entered as one of the best seconds.
Davis Cup 2021
- Feliciano López defeated Rublev (2-6, 6-3 and 6-4) and Daniil Medvedev defeated Pablo Carreño (6-2 and 7-6 [7/3]). In the final doubles match, Karatsev / Rublev beat Feliciano López / Marcel Granollers: 4-6, 6-2 and 6-4.
- The Davis Cup quarterfinals begin on Monday in Turin with the duel between Croatia and Italy. Tomorrow Tuesday, in Innsbruck, the second match will take place, which measures Great Britain against Germany.
- The other two quarter-final matches are played in Madrid. On Wednesday, December 1, Kazakhstan will play against Serbia and on Thursday, December 2, Russia will face Sweden.
- The semifinals and the final are also in Madrid. On Friday, the winner of Italy-Croatia against Kazakhstan-Serbia. On Saturday, the winner of the Great Britain-Germany against Russia or Sweden.
- On Sunday, the final.
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/cloudfront-eu-central-1.images.arcpublishing.com/larazon/ODGVKHLTSVG3ZNCVEEFCNU3IRM.jpg "Spain and Feliciano López touch the feat, but are left out of the Davis Cup")
