The German tennis team fought its way to the semi-finals in dramatic fashion at the Davis Cup in Bologna. Kevin Krawietz and Tim Pütz won the decisive doubles duel with Argentina against Horacio Zeballos/Andres Molteni in the tiebreak thriller with 4:6, 6:4, 7:6 (12:10) and kept the dream of the first title in the traditional national competition since 1993 alive.
Top player Alexander Zverev had previously withstood the pressure and won his singles against Francisco Cerúndolo 6:4, 7:6 (7:3). After Jan-Lennard Struff’s 6:7 (3:7), 6:7 (7:9) opening defeat against Tomás Martín Etcheverry, that was ultimately enough for the semi-finals.
With world number three Zverev at the top, the Germans are considered one of the favorites for the title; in the round of the last four on Saturday (12 p.m./Tennis Channel and tennis.de) Spain is waiting for national coach Michael Kohlmann’s team. For Zverev it was the first game in the Davis Cup since February 2023.
Struff defeat in the opening match
Struff, on the other hand, is a Davis Cup veteran, and the 35-year-old got off to a good start in the atmospheric “SuperTennis Arena” in Hall 37 of the BolognaFiere. The Warsteiner, who had recently gained fresh self-confidence with a victory at the Challenger tournament in Lyon, restored an early break in the middle of the first set. Etcheverry had better nerves in the tiebreak.
The second round also turned out to be a thriller, with both players not showing any weakness when serving. Etcheverry served seven (!) aces in a row in the decisive phase – and again had the upper hand in the tiebreak. “He deserved the win. I would have deserved it too. Tennis is like that sometimes,” Struff said.
Zverev only loses his nerve for a short time
Zverev, who has a record of 1:3 against Cerúndolo on the tour, was highly concentrated in the first set. In the second round, the German’s strength weakened somewhat; when the score was 5:5, he angrily threw his racket on the ground. Nevertheless, a little later he won the match in the tiebreak.
“I’m obviously overjoyed with the win and that we’re staying in the tournament” said Zverev and added: “I have full confidence and believe in our doubles boys. We have to play a great match and hopefully they can do that too.”
Krawietz/Pütz win a dramatic double
And that’s exactly how it happened. Against an outstanding Argentinian doubles team, Krawietz/Pütz were immediately punished for a small phase of weakness in the first set. As a result, the German duo fought back and won an acclaimed victory in a tennis thriller.