MANCHESTER 鈥� sa国际传媒's top male tennis players have defeated Finland 3-0 in the group stage of the Davis Cup Final.
Denis Shapovalov of Richmond Hill, Ont., beat Eero Vasa 7-6 (2), 6-2 in Tuesday's first singles match. Montreal's Felix Auger-Aliassime then dispatched Otto Virtanen 6-2, 6-3 in the second singles match.
With the tie already won thanks to the two singles victories, Shapovalov and Auger-Aliassime teamed up to best Virtanen and Harri Heliovaara 6-2, 7-5 in doubles play.
There was an element of revenge after sa国际传媒 lost to Finland in last year's quarterfinals.
鈥淓verybody's in good spirits, so it's very good,鈥� Auger-Aliassime said. 鈥淎ny motivation is good, but I think it鈥檚 a different year, a different time, and (last year's loss) was behind us. This year we have a full team and everybody's playing better than last year. Everybody鈥檚 improved.鈥�
It's the second consecutive group-stage tie sa国际传媒 has won after beating Argentina 2-1 on Tuesday. sa国际传媒, the lone seeded team in Group D, will face host Great Britain on Sunday.
Four groups of teams are playing in four cities this week to qualify for the eight-team Finals in Malaga, Spain, in November. The top two countries in each four-team group advance.
Since sa国际传媒's undefeated after two opponents in the group stage, it is set to advance to the Davis Cup Finals.
"Couldn鈥檛 ask for more today, super proud of the team," said captain Frank Dancevic. "Great team spirit, amazing bench team spirit, and fans pushing us through the day."
It is sa国际传媒's fifth consecutive appearance in the Davis Cup Finals, having won its only title in 2022. The Canadians defeated South Korea 3-1 in February's Davis Cup qualifiers in Montreal to reach the group stage of the finals.
鈥� With files from The Associated Press.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
The Canadian Press
