Cilic gives Croatia early lead in Davis Cup final
Marin Cilic gave Croatia an early lead in the Davis Cup final with a thrilling five-set win over Argentina’s Federico Delbonis in Zagreb.
Cilic, the highest-ranked player in the tie at sixth in the world, won 6-3 7-5 3-6 1-6 6-2 in the opening match of the best-of-five contest.
Juan Martin del Potro will try to draw Argentina level when he faces Ivo Karlovic in Friday’s second singles.
Croatia won their first and to date only Davis Cup title in 2005.
Argentina, who beat reigning champions Great Britain in the semi-finals, hope to finally win the title after losing in four previous finals.
“The crowd helped me to stay in there, it was not easy,” said Cilic, who let a two-set lead slip before prevailing in three hours and 30 minutes.
“Federico played a great tennis from the middle of the third set to the end of the fourth. Just at the beginning of the fifth, I tried mentally to stay in there and get that break, and it was a huge difference.”
| Latest score: Croatia 1-0 Argentina (best of five) |
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| Friday: Marin Cilic (Cro) beats Federico Delbonis (Arg) 6-3 7-5 3-6 1-6 6-2 |
| To follow: Ivo Karlovic (Cro) v Juan Martin del Potro (Arg) |
| Saturday, 14:00 GMT: Ivan Dodig & Franko Skugor (Cro) v Leonardo Mayer & Guido Pella (Arg) |
| Sunday, 13:00: Marin Cilic (Cro) v Juan Martin del Potro (Arg) |
| To follow: Ivo Karlovic (Cro) v Federico Delbonis (Cro) |