Weekend at Davis's

One of the less appreciated aspects of Davis Cup is that the September semifinals weekend is always loaded. In fact, it’s just about as critical and action-packed as the first round, when the 16 teams in the World Group face off. That’s because semifinals weekend is also when the World Group Play-offs—eight ties featuring the first-round World Group losers butting heads with nations that survived Group I play—are contested.

With a random draw, it’s hardly inconceivable for generally elite nations to stumble out in the first round of World Group play—Spain, Serbia, and the United States did so this year. That adds to the pressure of this past weekend, for if a first-round loser falls again in the Play-offs round, they’re obliged to sit out the following year’s World Group tournament as they fight their way back up. And if you think requesting top players to participate in World Group play is asking a lot, imagine how onerous it is for them to put in another multi-week commitment with no chance at all of winning the competition.

This is one of the things that makes Davis Cup maddening to some. It is also one of the things that makes Davis Cup great. For example, Marin Cilic, fresh off an exhausting and dizzying triumph at the U.S. Open, answered the call in the Play-offs round and clinched the tie for Croatia, in Amsterdam.

But we’re getting ahead of ourselves; let’s start from the top, with the marquee match-ups, and take it from there:

Yes, there is life after Grand Slams

Switzerland (home) defeated Italy, 3-2 (3-1 live rubbers), in a tie that ended up closer than it might have been because Roger Federer sat out the doubles. The Swiss had a 2-0 lead, but then Stan Wawrinka and Marco Chiudinelli (doubles ranking: No. 216) lost a five-setter to Simone Bolelli and Fabio Fognini. But Federer clinched the victory when he handled Fognini in straight sets in the fourth-rubber battle of No. 1s. How cool was it to see Federer, making a triumphant muscle, carried around Geneva’s Palexpo on the shoulders of Wawrinka and captain Severin Luthi?

No Blues for these Bleus

France (home) defeated the Czech Republic, 4-1 (3-0 live rubbers). Roger, Stan? Be afraid—be very afraid.

The French were nearly the victims of a shocking upset at the hands of Germany in the quarterfinal round, but they rebounded from an 0-2 deficit to eke out a place in the semis. Now, they look like a team of destiny after having crushed the two-time defending champion at Stade Roland Garros. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Richard Gasquet did the heavy lifting, winning the first two singles matches and teaming to sweep the doubles. It was all set in motion by Gasquet’s inspired, first-rubber win over world No. 6 Tomas Berdych. The French lost just one set in the tie, in the doubles. They will host the final, which shapes up as one of the most intriguing in recent memory.

The sun set on Israel’s hopes in Sunrise, Fla.

Argentina defeated Israel, 3-2, on a neutral site (security reasons). The baby blues recovered from a 1-2 deficit after the doubles to take the final two singles matches. The tie was a harrowing one for Argentina, mainly because Dudi Sela, No. 84, upset No. 67 Carlos Berlocq in the second rubber, and Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram won a tough five-set doubles match over Federico Delbonis and Horacio Zeballos. Stung, the Argentines rolled through the final two singles easily, with Leonardo Mayer beating Sela and Berlocq (at right, with torn shirt) finishing off Bar Tzuf Botzer (ranked No. 776, and that’s no typo).

Reset for the Red, White, and Blue

The United States (home) defeated Slovakia, 5-0 (3-0 live rubbers). John Isner and Sam Querrey made their debut as Davis Cup teammates on clay in Serbia four years ago, and while their team lost that tie 3-2, it seemed like they might pick right up where Andy Roddick and James Blake left off. It didn’t exactly pan out that way for the U.S., but it might yet. While Isner was expected to dispatch No. 126 Norbert Gombos, Slovak No. 1 Martin Klizan is a tricky and talented player who was actually ranked ahead of Querrey. But the American handled him with ease to put the U.S. up 2-0, and then the ever-reliable Bob and Mike Bryan powered to another doubles win to complete the sweep. The only set the U.S. lost was in the fifth, dead rubber.

S.O.S. ... S.O.S. ... S.O.S. ... Rafa, can you hear me?

Brazil (home) defeated Spain, 3-1. It seemed unthinkable: The team that has dominated the competition over the past decade, winning five times since 2000, is out of the World Group for 2015, having absorbed an unexpected loss to Brazil. Granted, Spain was without the services of No. 2 Rafael Nadal, No. 7 David Ferrer, No. 20 Feliciano Lopez, and others, but pundits still felt that No. 15 Roberto Bautista Agut and No. 44 Pablo Andujar could handle the chores. But hugely talented and spectacularly inconsistent Thomaz Bellucci came up big. He beat Andujar in a five-set second rubber, then secured the upset with a four-set, fourth-rubber win over Bautista Agut.

Thar they blow!

Canada (home) defeated Colombia, 3-2 (3-1 live rubbers). Halifax, Nova Scotia is known for its excellent whale watching, but the Colombians were treated to an equally impressive display of serves spouting from the racquets of Milos Raonic and Vasek Pospisil, who won the first two rubbers. They beat Alejandro Gonzalez and Santiago Giraldo respectively. In a shocker, Juan-Sebastian Cabal and Robert Farah manhandled doubles legend Daniel Nestor and Pospisil, but Raonic ended the fightback with a convincing win over Giraldo in the fourth rubber.

Just in a Nick of time

Australia (home) defeated Uzbekistan, 5-0 (3-0 live rubbers). Nineteen-year-old Aussie sensation Nick Kyrgios was roughed up in the first two Davis Cup ties of his budding career, and that can do permanent damage to a competitor’s psyche. But he bounced back from those two painful first-round losses in France earlier this year (to Gasquet and Gael Monfils, the latter in a dead rubber) and got Australia off on the right foot with a straight-sets win over No. 55 Denis Istomin. Lleyton Hewitt, a great Davis Cup warrior, then won his 40th singles rubber over No. 133 Farrukh Dustov. He celebrated in typical fashion—by joining Chris Guccione to dust Istomin and Dustov. Australia didn’t lose a set in the tie.

Chillicin’ in Amsterdam

Croatia (away) defeated Netherlands, 3-2. Mate Delic, No. 154, stepped up and upset No. 72 Igor Sijsling in the first rubber to buy Marin Cilic a little bit more rest following his win in Flushing Meadows. Robin Haase handled rising Croatian star Borna Coric in the second rubber, and then Cilic made his presence felt in a big way. He partnered with Marin Draganja to take the doubles from Haase and Jean-Julien Rojer; then, when Haase won the fourth rubber over Delic, Cilic was called upon to clinch for Croatia. He did it in style, with a four-set win over the 145th-ranked but always mercurial Thiemo de Bakker.

It’s a dog’s life

Belgium defeated Ukraine, 3-2, on a neutral site (security reasons). Ukraine’s grand ambition to bust into the World Group was put on hold, thanks partly to the absence (due to injury) of No. 23 Alexandr Dolgopolov. Sergiy Stakhovsky got Ukraine off to a good start with a nice win over Steve Darcis, but David Goffin crushed No. 148 Ilya Marchenko, and Belgium won the doubles. Stakhovsky, playing his third match in as many days, couldn’t stop Goffin from clinching for Belgium with a three-set win.

Monday Morning Tennis

The tie between Serbia and India, in Bangalore, was deadlocked at 2-all when rains came to force a postponement to Monday. Dusan Lajovic and Filip Krajinovic swept the first two singles matches for Serbia, but highly decorated doubles veterans Rohan Bopanna and Leander Paes found the magic again and won a doubles thriller, 8-6 in the fifth. Somdev Devvarman then outlasted Lajovic in a five-setter, and No. 107 Krajinovic led No. 153 Yuki Bhambri, 6-3, 4-4, when the rains came. After what was surely a rough night’s sleep, Krajinovic (at right) completed the tie, and the World Group Play-offs, with a three-set win, keeping Serbia in the main event.