Spain is one win away from a return trip to the Davis Cup World Group heading into doubles action on Saturday. Fernando Verdasco and Rafael Nadal roll to singles wins on Friday to put the home team in front.
Fernando Verdasco (ESP) d. Alexandr Dolgopolov (UKR) 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-2
Verdasco improved to 3-0 lifetime against Dolgopolov by kicking off the Spain vs. Ukraine Davis Cup playoffs tie with a four-set win on Friday afternoon in Madrid. The Spaniard needed two hours and 33 minutes to complete his comeback from a one-set deficit. It was Dolgopolov who got off to an impressive start, breaking twice in the first set without facing a break point on his own serve. Little separated the two players in the second. Verdasco won two more points than his opponent, but he saved one break point and capitalized on one of his three chances before serving it out at 5-4.
Sets three and four, however, were more straightforward for Verdasco. The world No. 33 generally held in far more routine fashion than Dolgopolov in the third even though it was decided by just one break. Verdasco closed it out at 5-4 then dropped only four points in his last four service games. Dolgopolov committed 14 unforced errors in the fourth to end his hopes of ever getting back on track in the match.
Rafael Nadal (ESP) d. Sergiy Stakhovsky (UKR) 6-0, 6-0, 6-4
Playing just four days after winning his second U.S. Open title, Nadal clearly had no interest in staying on the court any longer than necessary. The world No. 2 lost just four games and needed only one hour and 42 minutes to put Spain ahead of the Ukraine 2-0. Stakhovsky, who famously upset Roger Federer at Wimbledon this summer, did not even win a single game in the first two sets. He won a mere total of nine points in the entire second frame of play–six on serve and three on return.
Stakhovsky finally got on the scoreboard in set three, and he did so on four straight service occasions. The world No. 92 fought off five break points along the way, but Nadal finally converted his sixth chance of the set at 4-4 with a perfect passing shot. Nadal held easily one game later to wrap up the proceedings in style. The 13-time Grand Slam champion will team up with Marc Lopez on Saturday in hopes of clinching the tie and sending Spain to the 2014 World Group.
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