France, Argentina, Austria and Germany close in on Davis Cup final 8
LONDON: France moved to the brink of the Davis Cup Final 8 after taking a commanding 2-0 lead over Croatia in Osijek on Friday. Debutant Corentin Moutet set the tone by defeating home favourite Dino Prizmic 6-4, 5-7, 6-1 before Arthur Rinderknech sealed victory against former U.S. Open champion Marin Cilic 6-4, 6-4. The 10-time champions will advance if they secure just one more win in Saturday’s remaining rubbers, starting with the doubles.
Elsewhere, Argentina dominated in Groningen to put the Netherlands under severe pressure. Tomas Etcheverry beat Jesper De Jong 6-4, 6-4 before Francisco Cerundolo outclassed Botic van de Zandschulp 7-6(1), 6-1. Dutch captain Paul Haarhuis admitted his team face a “deep hole” but insisted they will fight to keep their hopes alive.
Austria also stunned Hungary in Debrecen with Jurij Rodionov upsetting Fabian Marozsan 6-2, 6-7(5), 7-5 and Lukas Neumayer edging Marton Fucsovics 6-3, 3-6, 7-6(7). Both Austrian winners are ranked outside the top 50, highlighting the scale of the upset.
Germany, too, made a strong start in their qualifying tie, keeping themselves in prime position for Bologna, where the Final 8 will be staged later this year.
