ISLAMABAD/PARIS - China on Sunday completed its clean sweep against Pakistan in a Davis Cup tie, winning both single matches on day three at the Sri Lanka Tennis Association courts. The third day was just a formality, with China having already secured its place in the next round after winning the first two singles and the doubles match on Friday and Saturday respectively.
Pakistan managed to take just one set off the Chinese side in the final day's two singles matches. Chinese Wu Di beat Pakistan's M Abid by 6-1, 6-0, while Zhang Ze defeated Yasir Khan 6-3,6-0. On Saturday, China's Bai Yan and Gong Mao-Xin had defeated Pakistani pair Aqeel Khan and Aisam Qureshi 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (7-4) in the doubles match. Zhang Ze beat Aqeel Khan 6-4, 6-2, 6-2 and Wu Di outclassed Yasir Khan by 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 on the opening day. The Davis Cup tie between Pakistan and China in the Asia-Oceania zone Group One was played in Sri Lankan capital Colombo instead of Pakistan due to security concerns.
It was highly shocking performance by the Pakistani team and speaks volumes about Pakistan Tennis Federation seriousness and it must stop talking and take actions.
PTF President Salim Saifullah Khan had hired an army of officials and also paid employees, who are getting handsome monthly salaries, but on the other hand the PTF doesn’t have funds to send coach with the Davis Cup squad, which resulted in the worst performance, as Aisam was given added responsibility of playing captain.
One thing was quite strange from PTF point of view. M Abid Ali Akbar and Samir Iftikhar were involved in the Group-II ties but when it matters most and the country needed them, they were not invited. Now only federation can answer this simple question whether Samir and Abid Ali were injured or federation didn’t have funds to give them air tickets. In both cases, it was country, who suffered, now is the time federation must start to find fresh talent or else forget about performing well in international events or Davis Cup.
John Isner powered the United States to victory over Australia in the Davis Cup World Group tie with a masterful serving performance at Kooyong on Sunday. The towering Isner served 49 aces in delivering a 6-4, 6-4, 5-7, 7-6 (7/4) victory over Australia's Bernard Tomic in two hours 15 minutes in the fourth rubber to clinch the tie with an unassailable 3-1 lead.
Meanwhile, Novak Djokovic suffered his first Davis Cup defeat in five years on Saturday as Serbia slipped 2-1 down to Kazakhstan while Andy and Jamie Murray gave defending champions Great Britain a 2-1 lead over Japan.
World number one Djokovic and 39-year-old Nenad Zimonjic lost their doubles rubber to Kazakhstan's Andrey Golubev and Aleksandr Nedovyesov in Belgrade in the first round tie. The 6-3, 7-6 (7/3), 7-5 scoreline gave Kazakhstan a 2-1 lead ahead of the reverse singles on Sunday where the winner will go on to face either Britain or Japan in July's quarter-finals.
In Birmingham, the Murray brothers edged Britain closer to the quarter-finals with a 6-3, 6-2, 6-4 win over Japan's Yoshihito Nishioka and Yakutaka Uchiyama. Just as in their title triumph over Belgium in November in what was Britain's first Davis Cup success in 79 years, the brothers played a starring role. It was a fifth win in five Davis Cup outings for the Murrays who didn't face a break point on Saturday.
Croatia went ahead 2-1 in Liege when Ivan Dodig and Franko Skugor enjoyed a 7-6 (7/5), 6-3, 6-1 win over Ruben Bemelmans and David Goffin. Italy became the first team to reach the quarter-finals when Simone Bolelli and Andreas Seppi defeated Marco Chiudinelli and Henri Laaksonen 6-3, 6-1, 6-3 for a 3-0 win over Switzerland.
World Group rookies Poland fought back in Gdansk by winning the doubles against Argentina after dropping both of Friday's singles. Marcin Matkowski and Lukasz Kubot saw off Carlos Berlocq and Renzo Olivo 6-3, 6-4, 6-4. In Hanover, Tomas Berdych claimed a 50th Davis Cup win when he and veteran Radek Stepanek claimed a 7-6 (9/7), 7-5, 6-4 win over Germany's Philipp Kohlschreiber and Philipp Petzschner. The Czech Republic, champions in 2012 and 2013, are 2-1 in front.
If they win through on Sunday they will face France, who beat Canada 3-0 in Guadeloupe, in the quarter-finals. Jo-Wilfried Tsonga and Richard Gasquet defeated Vasek Pospisil and Philip Bester 7-6 (7/4), 6-1, 7-6 (7/4) for the winning point as France marked captain Yannick Noah's first match of his second spell in charge with victory.