Tags:
Journalism of Courage
The United States were knocked out of the Davis Cup in the quarter-finals on Sunday following a 3-1 defeat by Croatia. Marin Cilic made sure that the Croatians wrapped up the tie with a 6-3 6-3 4-6 6-2 win over James Blake. Croatia will take on the Czech Republic in the semi-finals in September.
In Ostrava,Radek Stepanek beat Juan Monaco in the final reverse singles match to give the Czechs a 3-2 win over Argentina and a place in the semi-finals. Stepanek won 7-6 (5) 6-3 6-2. Juan Martin del Potro had beaten Tomas Berdych in the opening reverse singles match 6-4 6-4 6-4 to level the tie at 2-2.
In Tel Aviv,Israel wrapped up a memorable 4-1 victory over Russia when Harel Levy beat Igor Kunitsyn 6-4 4-6 7-6 (2). Israels top player Dudi Sela had retired with a hand injury in his match against Igor Andreev with the Russian leading 4-3 in the first set. Levy thanked the raucous local crowd for their support over the three days. This is your 4-1 (victory), he said. This is a lovely feeling because this was a great victory for the national team.
In Marbella,Spain,Philipp Kohlschreiber beat Fernando Verdasco 6-4 6-2 1-6 2-6 8-6 to level the quarter-final between Germany and defending champions Spain but Juan Carlos Ferrero beat Andreas Beck 6-4 6-4 6-4 in the decider to ensure Spains progress to the last four,where they will play Israel.
