- Following the contest, the Davis Cup squad commenced their journey in China with success.
China's Controversial Davis Cup Decision Sparked Debate, but German Team Triumphs
Posting about the stirring debates regarding the contentious allocation of Davis Cup matches to China, the German men's tennis squad, helmed by coach Michael Kohlmann, commenced their campaign for the finals with a victorious outing against Slovakia in Zhuhai. With their top player, Alexander Zverev, not present, the German roster still managed to bag the triumph, notching successes in both singles matches, which rendered the impending doubles clash unnecessary.
The Road to Malaga
Maximilian Marterer, hailing from Nuremberg, was satisfied with their launch, expressing a yearning for more. He convincingly subdued Lukas Klein 6:4, 7:5. Yannick Hanfmann then displayed resilience, bouncing back from a deficit to triumph 3:6, 6:3, 7:6 (7:3) over Jozef Kovalik, effectively saving a match point at 4:5 in the third set before securing the pivotal second victory.
The obstacle of qualifying as the top two teams within their group, thereby progressing to the quarter-finals in Malaga, Spain, in November, has now been surmounted.
The US Open finalists Tim Puetz and Kevin Krawietz, who just arrived the previous night, were spared the pressure of securing the doubles match success due to the well-played singles matches. The ITF's decision to assign the German group C to China led to considerable travel difficulties and elicited severe criticism. "I believe that the majority of teams here concur that it's more or less absurd to be competing here," Kohlmann had asserted.
Marterer's Confidence in the Upcoming Challenge
Despite the intense humidity inside the hall, the Germans continued to maintain their cool composure on the court. On the following day, the team, without Zverev, Struff, Koepfer, and Altmaier, will square off against Chile, the team anticipated as their toughest challenger.
"We've all put in lots of effort during our preparations. We feel comfortable amidst these conditions. I believe there might be a small surprise coming on Thursday," shared Marterer. The U.S.A. will serve as their last group adversary on Saturday.
Hanfmann Performs Despite Struggles
Considering the German singles players' top four positions in the world rankings, Marterer and Hanfmann have taken center stage. Both wrestled with nerves in their opening group duels. Hanfmann did not put forth his best performance against Kovalik but still engineered a turnaround, praising the victory after 2 hours and 17 minutes. "We've managed to secure the second point, and that's already a triumph," said the Karlsruhe native, who holds the German number one position and has a global ranking of 96th.
Marterer kicked off his contest with an ace break in the initial game and defended this lead through robust service games. In the second set, he demonstrated admirable calmness and resilience under tight serving circumstances.
"I believe I played rather well," Marterer remarked. "I hope to maintain this form in the upcoming matches. Then, we could have a highly successful stint."
Other teams also faced challenges due to the ITF's decision to host the group in China, sharing Kohlmann's sentiments about the travel difficulties and criticism. The German team's success against Slovakia in Zhuhai served as a reminder that other nations' rosters could also deliver impressive performances, even without their top players.
