Sports
oi-Gaurav Sharma
Alexander Zverev returned to action after his US Open triumph with a straight-sets victory over Croatia’s Matej Dodig in the Davis Cup qualifying round on Saturday.
The world No. 2 defeated the 21-year-old Dodig 6-4, 7-6(3) at the Heristo Arena in Halle to give Germany a 1-0 lead against Croatia.
Following his US Open victory, world No. 2 Alexander Zverev defeated Matej Dodig 6-4, 7-6(3) in Halle for the Davis Cup qualifiers, giving Germany a 1-0 lead before the tie was eventually leveled at 1-1.
It was Zverev’s first match since winning the US Open title in New York. The German had beaten American Ben Shelton in the final and quickly joined his national team for the Davis Cup tie.
Zverev made the only break of serve in the third game of the opening set. Dodig saved two break points but Zverev converted the third to move ahead. The German then protected his serve to take the first set 6-4.
The second set was much closer. Dodig stayed with the experienced German and did not allow Zverev to create another break. The set went to a tiebreak, where Zverev produced his best tennis at the important moments.
The 29-year-old won the tiebreak 7-3 to complete the victory and put Germany ahead in the tie. Zverev also hit 15 aces during the match, while Dodig did not get a break-point chance.
Despite the defeat, Dodig gave Zverev a strong challenge, particularly in the second set. The Croatian is ranked 171st in the world and was playing only his fourth Davis Cup match.
However, Germany could not carry the lead into the end of the opening day. Daniel Altmaier lost his singles match against Dino Prizmic 4-6, 3-6, leaving the tie level at 1-1.
The deciding matches are scheduled for Sunday, with the doubles followed by two reverse singles. Three wins are needed to secure a place in the Davis Cup Final 8 in Bologna, Italy, in November.
