In a result that should surprise everyone, the United States has advanced to the Davis Cup quarterfinals with a 3-0 sweep of Switzerland—the home side that featured Roger Federer and had its choice of surface. The clay-allergic Americans, by comparison, were without Bob Bryan, and thus their go-to doubles team, as well as Andy Roddick, who, current ranking be damned, boasts a gaudy 33-12 record in the competition.
So I suppose it was only fitting that, after John Isner produced what may be the upset of the year yesterday against Federer to give the U.S. a 2-0 lead, the makeshift pair of Mardy Fish and Mike Bryan took down Federer and Stanislas Wawrinka, the gold-medal-winning team at the 2008 Olympics.
They did so in four sets, 4-6, 6-3, 6-3, 6-3, in a neat two hours and 20 minutes. They did it forcefully, being the more aggressive side on serve and during the nominal rallies—I remember at least three volleys they hit right at their opponents, causing even the respectful Swiss fans to jeer (imagine if they were playing in, say, Argentina, or against Tomas Berdych). They did it with superior tactics and teamwork—Mike, whose expertise in doubles was evident throughout the match, called Mardy "Bob" afterward, owing to his fantastic net play and overall performance. And they did it with some luck—I remember at least three net cords that went the Americans' way, including a friendly bounce that gave Bryan an entire half of the court to guide a winner, one game after the U.S. scored the pivotal break of serve for a 3-1 fourth-set lead.
But what came through my broadcast most of all was that the Americans pulled off the win with confidence. And a lot of credit must go to Jim Courier, the two-time French Open champion who is now 2-0 as U.S. captain in ties on clay. His latest conquest was the best of the duo, for its sheer unlikeliness; even the calm commander appeared shocked at what occurred during his post-match interviews, as did a commentator, who was caught remarking of the U.S., "they were bloody good." Sometimes, that's all that needs to be said.
But a few words about the defeated Swiss. After 39 minutes, things looked promising—the red and white won a routine opening set and seemed like they could run away with the match, making for an easy day at the office for Federer and Wawrinka, who would have been summoned for live singles duty on Sunday. Federer began this rubber sharply, showing how a singles star can dominate a discipline he rarely competes in. One of his highlights came when Switzerland served for the opening set: A fade-away overhead was followed by a forehand into the doubles alley (so strange to see, from Federer) and a flawless smash. Even in victory, it wouldn't have made ESPN's highlight reels, but still.
What you may see, if SportsCenter isn't 60 consecutive minutes of Jeremy Lin highlights, is a Federer backhand wiff off a bad bounce that gave the United States match—and tie—point. The Americans didn't convert that one, but when Wawrinka's backhand reply to Mike Bryan's second serve embraced the net, Fish didn't embrace Bryan, rather, he chest-bumped him, calling upon Bob Bryan once more.
Wawrinka's meek return typified Switzerland's second, third, and fourth sets: They returned horribly, and Wawrinka, for the most part, was the weak link. Many mini-Swiss surges were grounded after a Wawrinka miss, and the team never put the Americans in a position where they truly felt the away-court pressure, or the gravity of the moment. That's in part due to how well Bryan and Fish played, and how well Courier coached them before and during the match. But it was also due to Federer and Wawrinka, who weren't as accurate as usual, much like their singles matches a day earlier.
—Ed McGrogan