Davis Cup
Deliver double and struff: Germany early in the final
The German team captain Michael Kohlmann (lr), Oscar Otte, Jan-Lennard Struff, Yannik Hanfmann, Tim Pütz and Kevin Krawietz stand together. photo
© Frank Molter/dpa
You can do without the number one. The German tennis team moves into the Final 8 of the Davis Cup in cool Hamburg without the injured Alexander Zverev before the last group game.
Edelfan Alexander Zverev cheered in the box, the match winners Kevin Krawietz and Tim Pütz hugged each other on the cold Hamburg Center Court. With a 2-1 win against Belgium, the German Davis Cup team reached the final tournament in Malaga at the end of November and proved that they are among the best in the world even without the injured Zverev.
Krawietz/Pütz got the decisive point, and Jan-Lennard Struff also won his match at the start. In addition to Germany, Australia, also undefeated, will make it into the Final 8 in Group C. In the duel between the two tennis teams on Sunday, it’s all about winning the group.
A roller coaster ride with all matches
In a highly exciting final doubles, Krawietz and Pütz had the better nerves in the end. 4: 6, 6: 2, 7: 6 (7: 5) they prevailed against the Belgian duo Sander Gille / Joran Vliegen. The German double caught up a 2:5 deficit in the tie-break in the third set. “It was such a rollercoaster ride with all the matches. It was a difficult situation. We didn’t play at the highest level, but in the end what counts is that we won,” said Pütz. And Krawietz said: “I have no idea how we won that. The whole team always believed. That helps enormously when you’re pushed again and again.”
“It was a supposed must-win”
As in the win against France, Struff laid the foundation. The 32-year-old, whose season was marred by a two-month foot injury, defeated Zizou Bergs 6-4, 7-6 (11-9) in a hard-fought and emotional match. “It was a supposed mandatory win. If you give one percent less, you lose the thing. That was an absolutely tough match,” said the relieved Struff. Oscar Otte then lost to Belgium’s top star David Goffin 6: 3, 6: 7 (7: 9), 3: 6 and thus missed the preliminary decision. In the second set, the 29-year-old missed two match points.
The players were protected by the tent roof from the constant rain in Hamburg, but the cold and wind still penetrated the center court at Rothenbaum – which influenced the game. “It was very slow,” said Struff. The Warsteiner’s serves didn’t have the usual effect at the beginning, neither Struff nor Bergs could keep their service in the first five games. In the second round, Struff fended off a total of seven set balls before he used his third match point himself.
A spectacular match in front of few fans again
A spectacular match, which again only a few fans watched in the 10,000-capacity arena. In the past few days, the high admission prices in Hamburg had already caused discussions. The organizer has now defended its pricing policy. “In addition to organizing the event, the organizer of a Davis Cup match also bears the entire financial risk and has to finance this almost exclusively from the income from the entrance fees,” said Herwig Straka, CEO of the Emotion Group, in a statement. The cheapest tickets for Germany games cost 75 euros, for all other matches at least 65 euros have to be paid.
At the other three locations of the group phase you get significantly cheaper admission. The cheapest ticket costs 25 euros in Valencia, 16.50 euros in Bologna and the equivalent of around 12 euros in Glasgow. According to the organizer, one reason for the weak inflow is Zverev’s injury. “There was great euphoria about Alexander Zverev’s home appearance, who was on his way to becoming number one in the world at the time. Ticket sales at the current prices got off to a good start before things unfortunately took a turn for the worse due to circumstances that could not be influenced changed,” said Straka.