Rafael Nadal beat Karen Khachanov 6-3 7-6 after 2 hours and 10 minutes to score his 25th consecutive Davis Cup singles win. Nadal levelled the tie to 1-1 after Andrey Rublev came back to beat Roberto Bautista Agut 3-6 6-3 7-6 (7-0) in the opening rubber match.
Nadal earned the break in the fourth game with a backhand down the line winner and saved a break point in the next game with a forehand winner. Khachanov fended off two break points in the fifth game with a forehand winner after taking a 40-0 lead. Nadal closed out the first set with two service winners in the ninth game.
Nadal saved a break point at 3-4 with a service winner in the second set. Khachanov fended off a break point in the ninth game to set up a tie-break. Nadal earned a match point at 5-5. Khachanov saved it before earning a set point. Nadal fended it off before closing out the tie-break, when Khachanov sent a backhand long on the 16th point.
“The format makes things very difficult because every mistake puts you in a position that you don’t want to be. Losing that first match, we were under pressure”,said Nadal.
Marcel Granollers and Feliciano Lopez completed the come-back by scoring the 2-1 point in the decisive doubles match by beating Andrey Rublev and Karen Khachanov 6-4 7-6 (7-5).
“It was a difficult situation for us. We needed this win, otherwise we could be close to being out of the tournament. Now we are in a good position to advance”, said Feliciano Lopez.
Spain will secure a spot in the quarter final if they beat Croatia on Wednesday.
Canada beats the USA 2-0
Canada beats the USA 2-0 to become the first team to secure their spot in the quarter finals. Vasek Pospisil edged past Reilly Opelka 7-6 (7-5) 7-6 (9-7). Denis Shapovalov beat Taylor Fritz 7-6 (8-6) 6-3. Canada beat the USA for the first time after 15 defeats in their previous rubber matches. The two neighbouring teams have met for the first time since 1965.
Australia cruises through to 3-0 over Colombia
Australia beat Colombia 3-0 to take the lead in the Group D. Nick Kyrgios beat Alejandro Gonzales 6-4 6-4. Alex De Minaur secured the winning point in the second singles match with a 6-4 6-3 win over Daniel Elahi Galan. John Peers and Jordan Thompson fended off match points to beat Juan Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah 6-3 3-6 7-6 (8-6).
