ASTANA – The Kazakhstan Davis Cup team beat Italy 3:2 in team competition on March 6-8 at Astana’s National Tennis Centre to advance to the Davis Cup quarterfinals.
Kazakhstan’s number one player Mikhail Kukushkin beat Italy’s Andreas Seppi in three sets, 7:6(8), 6:0, 6:4, of the fourth match on the hardcourts of the tennis centre to tie the team score at 2:2 on March 8.
Kukushkin gave Seppi only one break opportunity in the match and converted five of the 10 chances offered him by Seppi. Seppi was let down by 55 unforced errors. Kukushkin had just 28 errors, according to ABC News.
“I did it today. And my hits were very good. I didn’t make any mistakes in the most [important points in the match],” Kukushkin told the Tennis Federation of Kazakhstan.
Team Captain Dias Doskarayev assigned Alexander Nedovyesov to the play-off to break the 2:2 team tie. Nedovyesov beat Fabio Fognini, the 22nd ranked player in the world, in an epic three hour and 41-minute, five-set match 7:6(5), 3:6, 4:6, 6:3,7:5. Nedovyesov had 18 aces in the match, reported the Tennis Federation of Kazakhstan.
“This match was fantastic for me. I thank the captain for his trust and opportunity to play in the play-off. I am very glad. The match was very stressful,” Nedovyesov said at a press conference after the match.
According to daviscup.com, “Kazakhstan underlined its burgeoning reputation in Davis Cup by booking a quarterfinal berth for the fourth time in five years.”
Kazakhstan will face the Australian team in the Davis Cup quarterfinals in July. The Australian team reached the quarters after beating the Czech Republic 3:1.
