France, Belgium Return To The Davis Cup QF

FRANCE 3, NETHERLANDS 1
Venue: Halle Olympique, Albertville, FRA (hard- indoor)

Adrian Mannarino banished the disappointment of his loss on Friday to beat Robin Haase in a five-set marathon 4-6, 7-6(5), 7-5, 6-7(2), 7-5 and book France’s spot in the quarter-finals of Davis Cup World Group play, in which the defending champion will play Italy.

“Having my teammates cheer for me meant I could fight point after point,” Mannarino told DavisCup.com. “I had to give it my all. I’m so happy to have this moment.”

Mannarino arrived late to the tie — he was in Malta on Thursday — after both Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Lucas Pouille were forced to the sidelines with injury. But Mannarino found his footing and earned his first Davis Cup triumph in dramatic fashion to secure France’s place in the last eight.

France and Italy have met on 10 previous occasions, with both nations winning five ties. But Italy, which will host the tie, has a formidable home record, winning 15 of its past 18 clashes on home soil.

BELGIUM 3, HUNGARY 2
Venue: Country Hall du Sart-Tilman, Liège, BEL (hard – indoor)

Belgium will travel to the United States in April for a meeting in the quarter-finals after 2017 Nitto ATP Finals runner-up David Goffin beat Hungarian No. 1 Marton Fucsovics 7-5, 6-4, 3-6, 6-2 to clinch his nation’s 3-1 win in this weekend’s opening-round tie.

“I gave it a lot to win the second set and my level dropped,” Goffin said. “But I managed to find more intensity in the fourth and the key was to be more aggressive. I played really well in the fourth.”

Goffin broke Fucsovics — who reached the fourth round of the Australian Open last month — on six occasions to secure his 18th win in his past 19 singles rubbers. Belgium now moves into its third Davis Cup quarter-final in four years, after reaching the final in both 2015 and 2017.

“I left everything on the court,” Fucsovics said. “I played better in the third set but he raised his level at the important moments in the fourth.”

Hungary’s Zsombor Piros defeated Julien Cagnina 6-3, 7-6(3) in the fifth rubber.

Belgium has yet to defeat the United States, with the Americans holding a 4-0 head-to-head lead against their European foes. The United States secured its place in the final eight after sweeping the first three rubbers against Serbia.

CROATIA 3, CANADA 1
Venue: Sportska Dvorana Gradski Vrt, Osijek, CRO (clay – indoor)

The 2005 Davis Cup winner, Croatia, secured a home quarter-final meeting against Kazakhstan after Borna Coric defeated Denis Shapovalov 6-4, 6-4, 6-4 in Osijek, Croatia, to clinch a 3-1 victory for his country in its opening-round tie against Canada.

The 2017 Next Gen ATP Finals semi-finalist looked confident on serve throughout the match, winning 78 per cent of points behind his first delivery and holding all 15 of his service games while facing just one break point. Coric was delighted to win against a tough opponent — Shapovalov also qualified for the inaugural Next Gen ATP Finals — in front of his home crowd.

“It’s the most unbelievable feeling in the world,” Coric said. “I was playing well for the whole match. Maybe there were some nerves, but as soon as I broke him in the first game, I felt good.”

Croatia and Kazakhstan have never met in Davis Cup play. Croatia will attempt to reach the semi-finals for the second time in three years while Kazakhstan will seek its maiden final four appearance after losing in the quarter-finals four times previously.

SERBIA 1, USA 3
Venue: Sportski Centar Cair, Nis, Serbia (clay – indoor)

Serbia and the United States returned on Sunday to play one dead rubber — Serbia’s Pedja Krstin defeated Steve Johnson 6-1, 7-5.

The United States secured its place in the Davis Cup World Group quarter-finals after winning the opening three rubbers of the tie, on Friday and Saturday, and will host Belgium for a place in the semi-finals. The United States has won all four of its previous ties against Belgium.