Two blows on Day One

Romania lead India 2-0 on Friday after the first two singles matches in their Davis Cup World Group playoff.

Romania lead India 2-0 on Friday after the first two singles matches in their Davis Cup World Group playoff. Romania No. 1 Victor Hanescu easily defeated India No. 2 Somdev Devvarman 6-3, 6-1, 6-0 in a match lasting just one hour and 20 minutes. Hanescu outclassed Devvarman, hitting the ball harder and more accurately and coming to the net to counter the Indian8217;s defensive game.

8220;I played well, I played solidly,8221; Hanescu said. 8220;I came to the net because I knew he would play a defensive game. 8221;

8220;After the first set it was cruise control for him,8221; said Devvarman. 8220;I think what really helped him was that I didn8217;t really get a look at his first serve even in the first set when it was closer. Once he got ahead he didn8217;t look back.8221;

Hanescu agreed that that first break had been an important turning point. 8220;I felt when I made that break that everything started to be on my side,8221; he said. 8220;I was solid from the baseline, my backhand was very good and I served well, so I think my game was complete.8221;

8220;Every loss is obviously tough, but you can learn from every loss,8221; Devvarman said. 8220;I8217;ve not played too many players of his quality and ability, and I found out a few things about my game today. 8221;

Prakash goes down fighting

Victor Crivoi had to work harder to defeat Prakash Amritraj 7-5, 5-7, 6-2, 6-2 in a match lasting almost three hours. India8217;s No. 1 got off to a good start, breaking Crivoi8217;s first service game, but then ran out of steam. Amritraj, more used to faster surfaces, played aggressively at first and repeatedly came to the net, which initially appeared to upset Crivoi.

Crivoi, playing only his second ever Davis Cup match, trailed 5-2 before rallying strongly to take the first set 7-5. The feisty Armitraj seemed impatient at times, and fared worse in long drawn-out rallies where Crivoi8217;s more accurate game counted. The second set was almost a reversal of the first set with Crivoi starting out better, before Armitraj got back into his faster paced game, and took the set 7-5. Crivoi, more used to playing on clay, took the third set 6-2. Armitraj, suffering from muscular cramps, then lost the fourth and final by the same scoreline.

Spain lead USA 2-0

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In Madrid, David Ferrer rallied to beat Andy Roddick in five sets and put Spain in firm control of their Davis Cup semi-final against reigning champion the United States. The fifth-ranked Ferrer beat No. 8 Roddick 7-6 5, 2-6, 1-6, 6-4, 8-6 to give the hosts a commanding 2-0 lead in the best-of-five series after top-ranked Rafael Nadal beat Sam Querrey 6-7 5, 6-4, 6-3, 6-4.

Spain, who haven8217;t lost a clay-court Davis Cup series in nine years, could secure their sixth Davis Cup final appearance on Saturday when Fernando Verdasco and Feliciano Lopez team up to play against American pair Mike Bryan and Mardy Fish in doubles.

In Buenos Aires, seventh-ranked David Nalbandian beat Russian Igor Andreev in straight sets to give Argentina a 1-0 lead in their semi-final. Nalbandian won 7-6 5, 6-2, 6-4 at Parque Roca Stadium in front of a partisan sellout crowd of 14,000.