After Cleeve Harper and Liam Draxl came up short in their doubles match, Gabriel Diallo shook off some struggles from the weekend to send Canada into a decisive match in their Davis Cup Qualifiers First-Round tie against Brazil on Saturday.
Draxl and Harper delivered an inspired effort, taking an early lead and hanging with the experienced pair of Orlando Luz and Rafael Matos for well over two hours. However, the recent Australian Open quarter-finalists held their nerve late in the second and third sets, breaking late in both to secure a 3-6, 6-4, 7-5 win.
The Canadians looked to set the tone early, creating a pair of break points in Luz’s opening service game. While they were unable to convert, a missed smash from Matos in the next Brazilian service game gave the Canadians a love-40 opening. Harper ripped a massive return on the second break point to grab an early 3-1 lead.
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That lone break was enough as the Canadians dominated their service games early. When it came time to close out the set, Draxl served it out to love.
Midway through the second set, the Canadians' level on serve started to slip. The first time they faced a break point, on Draxl’s serve at 2-3, Harper missed a put-away volley to hand the Brazilians their first break of the day. The Calgarian redeemed himself in the following game, though, setting up a series of break points with some impressive hitting. Draxl finished off the third to get back on serve.
However, the Brazilians kept pushing on return. Harper had to serve his way out of a love-30 hole to level at 4-4 and then, when Draxl served to stay in the set at 4-5, a hard passing shot coaxed an error to set up a break/set point. Luz’s looping return just barely dropped in to seal the set for the Brazilians.
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In the third, the Canadians found themselves under constant pressure. They dug deep, saving a break point in their opening service game and then a pair of match points at 4-5, with Harper delivering two huge serves when he needed them. But they could only hold the veterans off for so long. Draxl faced match points as he served to send the set to a tiebreak and on the second, Matos crushed a volley between the two Canucks to score the point and give Brazil the lead.
Diallo Brushes Off First-Match Loss
Diallo needed to mount a comeback to spark life into the Canadian faithful, and the 24-year-old did exactly that, finding his game in the second set before serving his way to a win in the third-set tiebreaker to seal the match 3-6, 6-1, 7-6(4).
Neither player gave their opponent any sort of light on return to start off the match as they each conceded just three points in as many service games.
However, at 3-4, 30-15, a Diallo double fault, followed by an awkward deep return from Pucinelli de Almeida, put the Canadian under his first bit of pressure. At 30-40, the Brazilian painted the line with a passing shot to break before serving out the opener to bring his nation within a set of taking the tie.
Undeterred, Diallo began to build some momentum after saving break point in the opening game of the second. At 0-1, the world No. 41 won seven-straight points to break Pucinelli de Almeida and lead 40-love in the third game, comfortably holding to go 3-0 in front.
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Diallo electrified the Canadian faithful at 1-4, 15-40, nearly taking the fluff off the ball with a rocket forehand winner for the break. There was no way the Montrealer wasn’t going to serve out the set as he found another gear, capping off the second with a deft drop volley at 5-1, 40-30.
Three love holds kicked off the decisive set and, in what looked to be a fourth with Diallo serving at 1-2, 30-love, Pucinelli de Almeida managed to turn the game around, winning three-straight points to hold break point. The Canuck saved at 30-40, along with two more later in the game, and eventually held to remain even at 2-2.
It was Diallo’s turn for a break opportunity in the ensuing game, but it was another gutsy hold, this time from Pucinelli de Almeida. The Brazilian needed to produce the same in the ninth game, winning the rally of the weekend en route to the hold and 5-4 lead.
The pressure was then on Diallo to serve to keep Canada’s Davis Cup hopes alive, and he did so twice to send the match to a decisive tiebreaker.
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An early double fault already started Pucinelli de Almeida off on the wrong foot as Diallo powered himself to a 3-0 cushion. At 6-4, the Canadian unleashed an unreturned serve to send the tie to a fifth and deciding match.
Diallo turns to his former Kentucky Wildcat teammate Draxl, who takes on Gustavo Heide in the final match of the tie.
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Feature Photo : Sarah-Jade Champagne
