The “revenge” for the lost final at the soccer world Cup is a success. Croatia’s Tennis-men defeat France in the final of the Davis Cup, and after 13 years, Once again the best Team in the tennis world.
Marin Cilic, Borna Coric and co. danced in the Croatian flag wrapped in a circle and sprinkled with champagne. In the cauldron of Lille the tennis team from the Balkans kept his nerve and won for the second Time after 2005, the Triumph in the Davis Cup. Before the eyes of their state President, Kolinda Grabar-Kitarovic, the Croats host and title defender have destroyed France, the victory of the party and returned the favor at least a little bit for the lost final of the world Cup in the summer in Russia. “It is not every day a world champion,” said Cilic after he had won the decisive third point for the 3:1: “It was a perfect weekend, we have all dreamed of. I’m incredibly proud of the Team.”
The meeting in the football stadium of OSC Lille was the last Davis Cup final in the old mode, the world Federation ITF, despite all the criticism of his radical reform plans. Instead of the four on the calendar year distributed rounds with home and away group games in the world, it will be the end of November 2019 in Madrid for the first time in a final tournament to 18 teams. The appointment and the mode of the new Davis Cup had taken care of in the past few months, for many discussions.
A number of top players, including Germany recently selected ATP-final winner Alexander Zverev, have excluded their participation in the newly created Event already categorically. Cilic, the US Open champion of 2014, not one of them. “This is a big break, an important Chapter of my life ends here,” he said, but reiterated: “It is planned that we will defend our title at the final tournament. I hope I can play there.”
Understrength French
But the thoughts of the future and the reform plans were gone on Sunday. Instead, the Croats enjoyed the Triumph to the full, after they were assumed to be 2016 in the final in front of their home crowd in Zagreb is still empty. As Cilic on Sunday after 2:22 hours on his third match ball to the 7:6 (7:3), 6:3, 6:3 turned against Lucas Pouille, he gave the starting shot for a great Croatian Party in Lille. The world ranking Seventh had already won on Friday in his first singles against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, also won Borna Coric against Jeremy Chardy.
After the 6:4, 6:4, 3:6, 7:6 (7:3) Nicolas Mahut/Pierre-Hugues Herbert against Ivan Dodig/Mate Pavic in the doubles on Saturday, the French had hoped briefly on the turn, but Cilic kept in the duel with the six years younger Pouille in the crucial moments of the nerves.
French captain Yannick Noah had to abandon the hunt after the eleventh title to its top players Richard Gasquet and Gael Monfils. After his defeat in the singles on Friday, Tsonga complained also about a groin problem. For the Match against Cilic was initially intended Chardy, Tsonga and Herbert had played on the Sunday morning. But Noah was after a long Hesitation, Pouille preference. The 24-Year-old, however, could only keep up in the first round, with Cilic.
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