The United States and Great Britain both edged their respective opponents on Tuesday on the second day of the Davis Cup Finals group stage.
Competing in Group D, the U.S. best Croatia 2–1 in Split, Croatia, while Great Britain toppled Australia by the same score in Group B in Manchester, England.
Other winners on Wednesday included Canada and the Czech Republic, who both pulled off sweeps. In Group A action, the Canadians blanked Italy 3–0 in Bologna, Italy, while the Czechs cruised past Spain in a Group C clash in Valencia, Spain.
The Davis Cup group stages are taking place Tuesday through Sunday in four cities across Europe. The top two teams in each round–robin group will advance to the knockout stage in Malaga, Spain, Nov. 21–26.
Mackenzie McDonald got the Americans off to a good start with a 6–4, 6–2 win over Dino Prizmic. Borna Gojo kept the Croatians alive by racking up 14 aces in a 6–4, 7–6 (6) victory over Frances Tiafoe, but the doubles pairing of Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram downed Ivan Dodig and Mate Pavic 7–6 (5), 6–7 (3), 6–2 to allow the United State to clinch the match.
Great Britain had a much easier time with the Australians, as Jack Draper edged Thanasi Kokkinakis 6–7 (6), 6–3, 7–6 (4), and Daniel Evans earned a 6–1, 2–6, 6–4 victory over Alex de Minaur to prevent a winner–take–all doubles match.
Draper finished with 24 aces and won 54 of 66 first–service points, while Evans saved six of 10 break points in his match.
Australia was able to avoid a sweep, however, as Matthew Ebden and Max Purcell were on the right end of a 7–6 (5), 6–4 decision against Evans and Skupski.
The Canadians put forth a dominating performance, as Alexis Galarneau and Gabriel Diallo both won in straight sets, beating Lorenzo Sonego and Lorenzo Musetti, respectively. Galarneau and Vasek Pospisil then prevailed in their doubles match, rallying for a 6–7 (4), 6–4, 7–6 (3) win over Matteo Arnaldi and Simone Bolelli.
The Czech Republic was just as dominant, with Tomas Machac beating Bernabe Zapata Miralles and Jiri Lehecka blanking Alejandro Davidovich Fokina. Both Machac and Lehecka won in straight sets. Jakub Mensik and Adam Pavlasek then finished it out in the doubles portion with a 5–7, 7–6 (6), 6–4 victory over Davidovich Fokina and Marcel Granollers.
Group stage action continues Thursday with four matchups: –Canada vs. Sweden (Group A) –Australia vs. France (Group B) –Czech Republic vs. South Korea (Group C) –Netherlands vs. United States (Group D)
Group stage standings (overall record, individual match record): Group A T1. Canada, 1–0, 3–0 T1. Chile, 1–0, 3–0 T2. Italy, 0–1, 0–3 T2. Sweden, 0–1, 0–3
Group B 1. France, 1–0, 3–0 2. Great Britain, 1–0, 2–1 3. Australia, 0–1, 1–2 4. Switzerland, 0–1, 1–3
Group C T1. Czech Republic, 1–0, 3–0 T1. Serbia, 1–0, 3–0 T2. South Korea, 0–1, 0–3 T2. Spain, 0–1, 0–3
Group D T1. United States, 1–0, 2–1 T1. Netherland, 1–0, 2–1 T2. Finland, 0–1, 1–2 T2. Croatia, 0–1, 1–2
