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Old 12-28-2015, 06:27 PM   #225
Brian Swartz
Grizzled Veteran
 
Join Date: May 2006
World Team Cup Semifinals

And then there were four. It is heady territory for Sri Lanka, having truly made it to the battle of the titans. Only the elite nations make it this far; and here we are, underdogs of course but just two ties, six match victories from a once-unreachable goal of becoming world champions. At this stage, there are few gimmes and most of the opposition are elite players. You've got to be
good to have a chance, but luck plays it's part as well.

That luck appeared to have Germany on it's side more than anyone else in their matchup with the Czech Republic . The Germans have a roster full of clay-court specialists, which is a double-edged sword but this was to be their third tie contested on the dirt in a row. On any other surface, the Czechs would have an almost guaranteed victory. For the USA and Sri Lanka, it favored the Americans somewhat but wouldn't be a major changer either way.

Monday

Antonin Iglar(CZE, 1st) vs. Harald Oncken(DEU, 29th)

Doesn't matter what the surface is here, Iglar figured to be a shoo-in. He backed that up by surrendering just three games to the German #2 as the Czech Republic took a 1-0 lead over Germany.

Perry Hogue(USA, 4th) vs. Girish Girsh(SRI, 15th)

This was the singles match where an upset was most possible for us. Girsh had beaten Hogue in Cincinatti under conditions more favorable to the American, and he had to steal one if we were to have a realistic chance. The first two sets were competitive and split, but Girsh dominated the third and went on to a 6-3, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 win! Hogue had 15 aces, but lost nearly half of the rest of his service points. A fine display of returning and patient baseline maneuvering here gives Girsh a second straight win in this matchup, and with a 1-0 lead we have put the pressure on the US right away.


Tuesday

Cestmir Marcek(CZE, 7th) vs. Bjorn Benda(DEU, 3rd)

Benda might be the one player Marcek has no chance against on clay. There were a couple of tight sets, but as expected the tie was leveled at 1-all with Bjorn's, 6-4, 6-0, 7-6(4) triumph in straights.

Pierce Gaskell(USA, 6th) vs. Anil Mehul(SRI, 2nd)

A commanding lead could now be had if Mehul could hold off Gaskell, far from a sure thing as he's unquestionably the Americans' best clay player. Gaskell had 17 aces, but even that was not enough to hold off a strong, focused effort. Mehul prevails 7-6(3), 6-2, 7-6(4) in a match that was competitive enough to go a while longer.


Wednesday

L. Nedved/J. Simunek(CZE, 16th/103rd) vs. H. Arendt/R. Ahlmann(DEU, 30th/80th)

Mastery of the dirt was the key here. The Germans had it, and cruised to relatively easy straight-sets win. They lead now 2-1, with the defending champions one defeat away from elimination.

O. Challenger/C. Dring(USA, 7th/13th) vs. G. Girsh/A.Mehul(SRI, 174th/234th)

This was the one matchup where the Americans held all the cards. A 7-5, 6-3, 6-1 scoreline showed that to increasingly be the case as the match went on. The lead was cut in half to 2-1, and the US stayed alive.


Thursday

Antonin Iglar(CZE, 1st) vs. Bjorn Benda(DEU, 3rd

The critical moment comes at a rematch of the RG final, in which Iglar snatched away Benda's crown. If he could repeat that performance, Marcek would be a near shoo-in on the final day against Oncken and the Czechs would escape. He took the first set, but in a reversal of the matchup at the French that would be all he would get. Benda delivered the clinching rubber here, 4-6, 6-3, 6-4, 6-2, and Germany moves on to the final!

Perry Hogue(USA, 4th) vs. Anil Mehul(SRI, 2nd)

Given Hogue's flagging form of late, Mehul was a substantial favorite here. He needed to take care of business, as Girsh-Gaskell would be a tough ask tomorrow. For such an occasion it was a stunningly one-sided match. Anil smashed the American who had once beaten him in six of their first seven meetings, 6-1, 6-2, 6-3. It was a comprehensive and frankly humiliating display -- and Sri Lanka pulls off the upset! They will meet Germany in the WTC Final!


Friday

A bit anticlimactic now with two dead rubbers was the final day. Marcek cruised by Oncken as expected, making the final count in the first semi 3-2 in favor of Germany. Meanwhile, Gaskell and Girsh staged a true classic. 19 aces came from the Americans racquet to just 4 for Girsh(with an equal number of double faults), but despite that it was as even as could be overall. Someone had to win, and at the end it was Girsh prevailing 6-4, 3-6, 7-6(2), 2-6, 6-4 to put the exclamation point on a 4-1 victory! It was also a huge moment for Girish Girsh as this week he had his second and third top-10 scalps of the year, including a first win over Gaskell in five meetings, all in the past 12 months.

Final Preview

Sri Lanka moves up another couple spots to 12th, but more importantly was the all-important choice of ground for the matchup with Germany. If they got their favored clay again it would be all but hopeless; if not, I liked our chances. In the middle of December, we will meet for the year's championship ... on clay. I'd really like to know who they paid off. This is four straight ties now for them on their favored surface, and all three of the knockout rounds. My prediction is unfortunately for a 3-2 loss. We should handle Oncken twice, but we'd have to either win doubles or have somebody beat Benda in singles to have a chance. On the dirt, that's a near-impossibility. We'll give it our best of course, and Mehul did push him to five sets at the French Open, but the chances of Benda having another off day like that are not good -- and it still wasn't quite enough. It seems that the powers that be have decided to virtually gift-wrap the title to Germany this year, but we're still going to have our shot.

Coming Up

One week off, then we head to Shanghai before finishing the year with the run-up to Paris and the Tour Finals.
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