Slovakia and Croatia reached their first Davis Cup finals on Sunday when they took an unassailable 3-1 lead over Argentina and Russia, respectively in the best-of-five semifinals.
Dominik Hrbaty (Slovakia) finished off Argentina’s challenge with a solid 7-6, 6-2, 6-3 win over Guillermo Coria. Ivan Ljubicic pummelled Russia’s Nikolay Davydenko 6-3, 7-6, 6-4 to send Croatia into their first Davis Cup final.
‘‘It was the best atmosphere I’ve ever played in,’’ smiled Hrbaty on court after his win. ‘‘All the people were cheering for me, and I didn’t want to disappoint them. I played really well right up to the last point, and I’m really happy for my team mates and all the people… I’ll always remember the atmosphere.’’ Slovakia will host Croatia in December’s final. “It’s the biggest moment in the history of Slovak men’s tennis,” Hrbaty said. “It was unbelievable.” (Agencies)