Alex de Minaur and Nick Kyrgios saved four match points to defeat Jamie Murray and Joe Salisbury 3-6, 6-3, 18-16 on Thursday afternoon, giving Australia a 2-1 victory against Great Britain and sending their country to the semi-finals of the inaugural ATP Cup.

After Salisbury missed a backhand return on Australia’s fifth match point, the Brits challenged whether the serve landed on the service line. And once confirmed, De Minaur and Kyrgios fell onto the court in an embrace, before getting up to shake hands. Kyrgios then quickly lifted De Minaur onto his shoulders and paraded around in celebration as the Ken Rosewall Arena crowd erupted for their countrymen.

The Aussie victory completed a wild tie to open Final Eight play in Sydney. Daniel Evans beat De Minaur in the No. 1 singles match after three hours and 24 minutes, winning a final-set tie-break to level the tie and force a deciding doubles match.

Australian captain Lleyton Hewitt made a bold decision to change his doubles line-up, replacing two-time Nitto ATP Finals champion John Peers and five-time ATP Tour doubles titlist Chris Guccione, who won all three of their Group F matches, with De Minaur and Kyrgios. That switch paid dividends for Hewitt and the Aussies.

As expected, the crowd was fully behind the Australians, roaring after nearly every point won. De Minaur and Kyrgios also leapt into chest bumps several times throughout the match, giving every ounce of physical and emotional energy they had, with Hewitt and countryman John Millman among those in the Australian Team Zone consistently taking a couple of steps out of that zone to motivate the Aussies.

Former doubles World No. 1 Murray and 2019 Nitto ATP Finals doubles qualifier Salisbury had the edge in doubles experience. But it was the Brits who succumbed under pressure, with Murray missing a backhand groundstroke on top of the net on one of Great Britain’s match points.

De Minaur and Kyrgios hit some incredible returns under pressure, hitting back-to-back backhand return winners up the line past the net man late in the Match Tie-break to set up the match point that the Aussies converted.

And while the Brits did well throughout the match to put themselves in strong positions to swat away volleys at net, the dynamic Aussies unleashed some powerful and heavy groundstrokes in key moments to make life difficult for Murray and Salisbury.

Australia will play Belgium or Spain on Saturday evening.

More than 11,000 kilometres separate Argentina and Australia. But for Guido Pella, Diego Schwartzman and the rest of Team Argentina, the Argentine fans have made that distance feel significantly smaller.

“[It] was an unbelievable feeling. It’s like we are playing at home,” Pella said of the crowds inside Ken Rosewall Arena during his win against former World No. 3 Marin Cilic on Thursday evening. “So it’s amazing to step into the court and feel that, because we not only play for our country, it’s like we play for everyone. This is a very nice feeling.”

The Argentines needed to defeat Croatia to win Group E, and their fans certainly helped the cause. From playing the drums and vuvuzelas to endless cheers — “Ole! Ole Ole Ole! Guido! Guido!”, for example — there was plenty of motivation for the players to leave everything on the court.

“[Wednesday] I was really, really focussed and not thinking about that,” said Schwartzman, who defeated Borna Coric to clinch Argentina’s win against Croatia. “But [in] the second match against [Dominic] Thiem, a few moments I was enjoying a lot. Those moments you need to enjoy. You never know when it’s going to repeat, playing in Sydney with more Argentines than maybe Australian people in the court.”

Nobody competing at the ATP Cup needs extra motivation to represent their country. But hearing screaming fans supporting the players for hours on end certainly doesn’t hurt.

“When you step into the court and there are a lot of people watching you, you feel a little bit of pressure, more than maybe in the regular tournaments,” Pella said. “But I think tonight I felt very good, I felt better than maybe the previous days. So I think I played very good, very solid from the baseline, and I think I did a very good job to get the win.”

When Pella arrived in Sydney for this inaugural event, he expected to invest his own emotions into competing for his country. But he didn’t think fans from home would turn out in swarms to sing his name.

“I never expected that at all. I think it was a huge surprise not only for me, for the entire team, because it was not only here at the venue. It was on the streets. There are a lot of Argentines living here, having vacation here,” Pella said. “So it’s very nice to chat with them, because we are very, very far from home right now. So it’s very nice to see Argentines.”

The player hotel is in the city, while the venue, Sydney Olympic Park Tennis Centre, is in the suburbs. But everywhere the Argentines have gone, they have had fans come up to them for pictures and to wish them luck.

“We took a lot of selfies the other day. It was very good, because like I said, we are very far from home. And to find a lot of Argentines who are here, who are living, who are on vacation in Australia, is very nice,” Pella said. “And also because I love this country. I like to come here a lot and it’s very special when I come here, because I like to play.”

Schwartzman shares the same sentiments. The World No. 13 has enjoyed the support throughout the city, on and off the court.

“We knew already since a few years ago what to expect here, because of the Argentine people,” Schwartzman said. “In the street, it’s really nice. In the beach, it’s really nice. In places around Sydney, it’s crazy how many Argentines we have, and here on court the same happens.”

Argentina will hope to parlay that support into success in the Final Eight. On Thursday evening, the Argentines will play Russia, the Group D winner, led by World No. 5 Daniil Medvedev. And although it will be a tough tie, they hope the crowd will give them the edge they need.

“It was amazing the past three days, a lot of people from our country,” Schwartzman said. “We are really happy to be here and playing like at home.”

Second seed Andrey Rublev felt nervous entering his second-round opener at the Qatar ExxonMobil Open, but came through his first test of the 2020 ATP Tour season with flying colours as he dismissed Mikhail Kukushkin 6-4, 6-2 on Wednesday in Doha.

Rublev had lost to the Kazakhstani in three of their past four tour-level main draw encounters, and anticipated another “really tough match”. But the 2018 Doha runner-up needed just 69 minutes to clinch the victory as he converted on four of his nine break points and dropped serve once.

“I’m really happy that I could win in straight sets today,” said Rublev. “Both of us were not really feeling the ball as normally we can feel, so it was more about mental.

“It was first match of the season, first match since two months. And, of course, I was a little bit nervous… But in the end, I’m happy that I accepted this and I focussed more on the things [for] how I can win with the game that I have today. And I’m happy with my performance.”

The 22-year-old enjoyed a career-best season in 2019 – reaching a career-high No. 22 FedEx ATP Ranking, winning his hometown title in Moscow and earning a nomination for Comeback Player of the Year – and was pleased he could start the new season with a win.

“Even when you finish the season well and you don’t play for a while, you lose a little bit [of the] rhythm of playing… If you win the first match, you feel like you’re back in the rhythm,” he said. “And if you lose, you feel I’m not in the rhythm; I need to win match to feel this feeling, to bring the confidence back. And that’s why I think it’s important, the beginning of the season.”

Rublev will look to continue his run in Doha when he next meets Frenchman Pierre-Hugues Herbert in their first ATP Head2Head meeting. Herbert, last year’s doubles champion (with David Goffin), dismissed No. 5 seed Laslo Djere 6-1, 6-3 in 62 minutes.

Jo-Wilfried Tsonga’s bid to reclaim the Doha title was cut short as he lost to Serbian #NextGenATP star Miomir Kecmanovic 7-6(9), 6-1. The third-seeded Frenchman held three set points in the first-set tie-break, but was unable to capitalise. Kecmanovic, 20, won five straight games to close out the 74-minute match and oust the 2012 champion.

“It was definitely one of my better wins,” said Kecmanovic. “I’ve had some exciting wins last year. And to start the year off with such a big name, it’s definitely motivating me and giving me a lot more confidence to keep going.”

Kecmanovic, who finished 2019 by reaching the semi-finals at the Next Gen ATP Finals, will next meet Hungarian qualifier Marton Fucsovics, a 6-1, 6-4 winner over Turkish wild card Cem Ilkel.

Spaniard Fernando Verdasco advanced beyond the Round of 16 for just the second time in eight appearances at this ATP 250 tournament, finishing strong to defeat sixth seed Filip Krajinovic 7-5, 4-6, 6-0. The 36-year-old Verdasco, who moved to Doha five years ago, achieved his best result here in 2017 when he reached the semi-finals (l. to Djokovic).

Verdasco awaits the winner between No. 4 seed Milos Raonic and French qualifier Corentin Moutet.

Mixed Results For Doubles Seeds
All four doubles seeds played their quarter-final matches Wednesday in Doha, resulting in two wins and two losses for the top tandems.

Second seeds Henri Kontinen and Franko Skugor battled their way into the semi-finals with a 6-7(2), 6-4, 13-11 victory over Ken Skupski and Neal Skupski. They will face Rohan Bopanna and Wesley Koolhof for a spot in the final after the No. 3 seeds dismissed Frances Tiafoe and Stan Wawrinka, 6-3, 6-4.

Mate Pavic and Bruno Soares, the No. 1 seeds, fell to Frederik Nielsen and Tim Puetz 4-6, 6-2, 10-7, while fourth-seeded Frenchmen and 2017 champions Jeremy Chardy and Fabrice Martin were defeated by Luke Bambridge and Santiago Gonzalez 6-3, 7-6(7).

The group stages are now complete. On Day 6 at the ATP Cup, the four remaining Final Eight positions were taken by group winners Spain and Argentina, while Belgium and Canada advanced as the two best second-placed teams.

Here are 10 of the biggest takeaways from Day 6:

1) Spain Qualifies: Roberto Bautista Agut and Rafael Nadal once again proved too strong in Group B singles action. Bautista Agut needed 79 minutes to beat Go Soeda 6-2, 6-4, before Nadal overcame the challenge of Yoshihito Nishioka 7-6(4), 6-4 to clinch a Final Eight spot for Spain.

2) Argentina Advances: Argentina swept its final Group E tie against Croatia 3-0 to book a Final Eight tie against Russia. Guido Pella downed Marin Cilic 7-6(1), 6-3, before Diego Schwartzman recorded his first win of the 2020 ATP Tour season against Borna Coric 6-2, 6-2 to clinch the tie and Final Eight qualification.

3) Serbia Makes It 3-0: In the day session at Pat Rafter Arena, Serbia ended its Group A campaign with a third tie victory against Chile. Dusan Lajovic started the day with a 6-2, 7-6(3) victory against Nicolas Jarry and Novak Djokovic earned an unassailable 2-0 lead after beating Cristian Garin 6-3, 6-3.

4) Polish Power: Poland ended its ATP Cup campaign with a 2-1 triumph against Austria in Sydney. Kacper Zuk rallied from a set down to beat Dennis Novak 5-7, 7-6(3), 6-3, before Hubert Hurkacz edged World No. 4 Dominic Thiem 3-6, 6-4, 7-6(5).

5) Belgium The Best: After beating Bulgaria 2-1 to end Day 5 with the best second-placed record, Belgium maintained that position on Day 6. Steve Darcis’ men will face Group B winners Spain in the Final Eight.

6) Canada Squeezes Through: Like Belgium, Canada also sat in one of the two best second-place finisher spots at the end of Day 5. Despite a fierce day of competition, none of the three second-placed teams in Groups A, B or E could better Canada’s record. Adriano Fuorivia’s men will meet Serbia in the Final Eight.

7) South African Success: South Africa finished Group A in second position, upsetting France 2-1 in Brisbane. After Gilles Simon defeated Lloyd Harris 2-6, 6-2, 6-2 to end South Africa’s hopes of a Final Eight spot, Kevin Anderson saved match point to beat Benoit Paire 2-6, 7-6(1), 7-6(5) and eliminate France from contention. In doubles, Raven Klaasen and Ruan Roelofse defeated Nicolas Mahut and Edouard Roger-Vasselin 6-3, 6-4 to clinch a 2-1 win.

8) Paire Magic: Paire produced one of the shots of the tournament during his match against Anderson. Chasing an angled drop shot, the talented Frenchman hit a diving forehand around the net post to find the corner of the court.

9) Georgia Finishes With Win: Georgia ended its ATP Cup bid with a 2-1 success against Uruguay. Aleksandre Metreveli cruised past Franco Roncadelli 6-2, 6-1, before Nikoloz Basilashvili battled past Pablo Cuevas 6-4, 1-6, 6-4 to end Group B in third place.

10) Bidding Farewell: With nine countries still in contention for the remaining four positions in the Final Eight at the start of Day 6, five countries ended their qualification bids on Wednesday. South Africa and France exited the competition in Group A, Japan fell short in Group B and the hopes of Croatia and Austria were ended in Group E.

The Final Eight for the inaugural ATP Cup is set. Eight teams will compete in Sydney at Ken Rosewall Arena for the championship, starting on Thursday.

With Argentina’s doubles win on Wednesday evening, the two best second-place teams were finalised. The Belgians are the seventh qualified team, and Canada qualifies eighth.

The moment ?? #TeamCanada realise they’ve advanced to the Final 8️⃣ in #Sydney ?#ForTheLoveOfCountry | #ATPCup pic.twitter.com/ZjfXaYBNzc

— ATPCup (@ATPCup) January 8, 2020

Quarter-final 1
Great Britain (Group C winner) v Australia (Group F winner) – Thursday, 9 January, 10am AEDT

Quarter-final 2
Argentina (Group E winner) v Russia (Group D winner) – Thursday, 9 January, 5:30pm AEDT

Quarter-final 3
Serbia (Group A winner) v Canada (Second runner-up) – Friday, 10 January, 10am AEDT

Quarter-final 4
Spain (Group B winner) v Belgium (First runner-up) – Friday, 10 January, 5:30pm AEDT