United Cup: Daniel Evans' victory powers Britain into City Finals
Sydney [Australia], January 1 (ANI): England's Daniel Evans defeated Spain's Albert Ramos-Vinolas in a crucial match on Sunday leading the British team to the City Finals.
Evans defeated the opponent 6-3, 1-6, 6-3 on the leaderboard in the critical match in Sydney following England's 2-1 lead in the tie. The 32-year-old's brilliance led his team to secure an invincible 3-1 lead in the tie and grabbed the top spot in Group D. In the City Final on Wednesday, Great Britain will take on the winners of group C.
"It is great to qualify Great Britain for the City Finals. It has been amazing to be part of the event up to this point. Watching so much great tennis. Watching the ladies compete so hard, they've done so well for our team and got us some big points. Badosa and Dart played an amazing match before me. It is one of the best matches I have watched Harriet play," said the English tennis player.
Evans outlasted Ramos-Vinolas in a physically intense match by using his sliced backhand to effectively keep the Spaniard pinned deep.
The World No. 27 played brilliantly around the net and battled hard in the third set, turning to Tim Henman, the captain of Great Britain, in the Team Zone for guidance and support.
After losing a break advantage in the third set, he recovered and, after two hours and fifteen minutes, defeated the tenacious Ramos-Vinolas. Although he lost, Ramos-Vinolas, who took the place of the injured Pablo Carreno Busta, showed flashes of his best performance throughout the game.
Evans, who claimed his lone tour-level victory at an ATP 250 tournament in Melbourne last season, roared in celebration before hugging his ecstatic teammates.
Prior to that, Paula Badosa led an incredible comeback to defeat Harriet Dart 6-7(6), 7-6(5), 6-1, giving Spain its first victory at the United Cup. Badosa overcame leg cramps while competing in her first match of the year to reel in Dart and keep Spain in the tie.
"I don't know what happened at the second set, I started a little bit to cramp. It was high-intensity, the first match of the year, I was nervous. But I could adapt myself. I started to play a little bit more aggressively. I'm very happy with the fight tonight because I played and fought until the last moment," Badosa said as quoted by ATPTour.com.
Badosa entered the match hoping to defeat Dart for the first time. The 98th-ranked British player defeated Badosa 6-3, 6-4 at the Billie Jean King Cup in November, handing her the only loss of the 2022 season.
Fortunately, Badosa once again drew Dart for her opening match of the 2023 season. Badosa had additional pressure to win a match that was crucial for Spain after Great Britain swept Spain on Day 3 to take a 2-0 lead.
Dart survived a 77-minute opening set to hold off the Spaniard's ferocious comeback, fending off two set points in the process. Badosa was having trouble keeping her rhythm while serving, and Dart got out to a 5-2 lead before the former World No. 2 settled in. At 6-5, Badosa ran off four consecutive games and earned two set points on Dart's serve, but the latter survived thanks to a valiant cross-court forehand.
However, Badosa suffered in the second set due to the exhausting first set and the humid weather. She got a 3-1 lead before her legs started cramping. By taking advantage, Dart managed to recover on serve before Badosa started to physically rebound.
Badosa started to feel better and her serving problems vanished with the aid of some pickle juice that the trainer had generously provided. The tennis player dominated the second set tiebreak, taking the lead 5-0 and holding off a Dart comeback to clinch the set with a bang.
Badosa won the final set and saved her best tennis for last, having the momentum firmly on her side. After 3 hours and 4 minutes of play, Badosa won the match with just three unforced errors, playing at the same level that earned her the Sydney title on this very court. (ANI)