Liam Draxl delivered the best performance of his career on Friday to give Team Canada presented by IGA the 1-0 lead over France in the Davis Cup Qualifiers Second Round tie in Quebec City. He upset French No. 1 Arthur Rinderknech in straight sets to score the first point for the hosts.
In his first-ever match against an opponent ranked inside the Top 50 of the ATP rankings, Draxl played fearless tennis and took advantage of some shaky play from the world No. 32. The Canadian No. 2 this week got off to a fast start and hung on for a 6-2, 7-5 win, giving Canada the lead.
Félix Auger-Aliassime now has a chance to put Canada in the driver;s seat in the best-of-five tie when he takes on French No. 2 Quentin Halys in the second singles match.
As can so often be the case in Davis Cup, rankings went out the window in this one. Draxl was near-perfect in this one, putting 78 per cent of his first serves in play and winning 73 per cent of those points. He broke Rinderknech three times and saved all three break points he faced.
At the start of the match, anyone watching trying to guess which player ranked outside the Top 200 and which was just seeded at the US Open likely would have gotten it wrong. In the opening game, Rinderknech was struggling to find the court and gifted Draxl the break with an error-filled service game. The Canadian had to battle to consolidate, needing to save a break point in his opening service game but found a way through for a quick 2-0 lead.
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Rinderknech’s shaky play continued through the opening set as he let a 40-love lead evaporate in his next service game. A netted volley from the Frenchman gave Draxl a chance for a double break and the Canadian showed him how it's done at the net, putting his shot away to go up 3-0.
Closing out the set proved a bit tricky for the Newmarket, ON-native. He had five set points on Rinderknech’s serve in the seventh game but could not convert any of them. He then led 40-15 on his own delivery at 5-2 only to be pushed to deuce. But he was not about to let the set slip away. Draxl delivered back-to-back big serves, finally closing it out on his eighth set point with an ace.
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The Frenchman reset in the second, cutting down on the errors and using his groundstrokes to keep Draxl pinned back on the baseline. The Canadian had been highly effective at the net in the opening frame but with that tactic neutralized, the match turned into a baseline grind.
At 2-1, Rinderknech had a golden opportunity to break when he led 40-AD on the Canadian’s serve and had a short backhand with Draxl stranded at the net. However, he drove it into the net and the Canadian went on to hold. Draxl had his first chance to break in the seventh game but the Frenchman erased it with a big serve.
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Draxl appeared to be in trouble late in the second when he let a 40-love lead slip away on his serve trying to stay in it at 4-5. A return winner from Rinderknech then gave the Frenchman a set point but the Canadian found another gear. He saved the break point with an ace and followed it up with a forehand winner and another big serve to escape the threat.
In the following game, Draxl curled a forehand winner past Rinderknech at the net to create a double break point opening. A wild rally ensued that included shots that clipped lines and a near-perfect lob from the Canadian which set up his drop volley winner to go up 6-5. Serving for the biggest win of his career, Draxl brought the heat, racing ahead 40-love a finishing it off with another big serve.
Auger-Aliassime and Halys are up next. If the Canadian wins, Team Canada would only need one point on Saturday to win the tie and advance to November’s Davis Cup Final 8 in Bologna, Italy.
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Feature Photo: Mathieu Belanger
