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2017 Davis Cup semi-final, Sunday, September 17 Belgium vs Australia, 5th Rubber Palais 12, Brussels, Belgium Steve Darcis vs Jordan Thompson |
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A spot in the Davis Cup final all comes down to this. Belgium’s Steve Darcis will take on Australia’s Jordan Thompson in the final rubber. Join The Roar for live scores and coverage from around 12am – midnight (AEST).
With Goffin getting past Nick Kyrgios in the first match on the final day, it means Belgium have rescued themselves from 2-1 down after being smashed in doubles yesterday.
The win means Steve Darcis, known by fans as Mr Davis Cup, will have a chance to book Belgium’s second Davis Cup final in three years.
It’s not hard to see why he is known as Mr Davis Cup either. Despite being hopelessly out of form, he took Nick Kyrgios all the way to five sets on the opening day of the tie, at one point leading two sets to one.
Undoubtedly, it was the best Darcis has played in quite some time. He hit lines, defended brilliantly and played an almost perfect clay court game during the second and third set.
He fell away over the last couple as Kyrgios jumped away with the match, but he will fancy his chances here.
The more interesting question here is whether Australia will play Millman, or turn to Jordan Thompson, who is currently undefeated in Davis Cup action.
Thompson was on court yesterday for doubles, but only played for an hour and a half. Millman meanwhile, had a physical game on the first day, and could be a little fatigued.
Darcis is in the same boat and looked to be having arm problems, so the extra power Thompson possesses, as well as his serve and athleticism, could really hurt Darcis.
Whichever way captain Lleyton Hewitt goes, he has a pair of in-form players. Millman took world No.12 David Goffin to four sets on the opening day, spending three and half hours on the court.
That followed a strong fourth round run at the US Open for Millman, where he got past Kyrgios and a host of other talented players. Thompson meanwhile, came into the tie off a win over Jack Sock at the US Open.
Prediction
Whether Millman or Thompson play, Darcis was looking very fatigued at the end of his match with Kyrgios, and with an arm problem as well, I’m not sure either of these match-ups suit him. It could be another grind, but Australia should be off to the final.
Thompson in five sets.
Be sure to join The Roar for live coverage of this final rubber of the semi-final from around 12am – midnight (AEST) and don’t forget to add a comment in the section below.