On this day: France tops USA for the first Davis Cup title in 59 years
Between 1925-33, the mighty French squad competed in nine straight Davis Cup finals, led by the famous Four Musketeers. Losing two consecutive finals in the USA in 1925 and 1926, the Frenchmen finally prevailed against their arch-rivals in 1927, sending the Davis Cup action to their country and building Roland Garros complex to host the Americans from 1928. After five straight titles in front of the home fans, the French team lost the one to Great Britain in 1933 and faded from the top-tier Davis Cup scene, advancing into only one final between 1934-1990 and missing that elusive trophy for almost six decades. That all changed in 1991when France finally claimed the title, avenging that 1982 loss to the USA and celebrating the first success in the notable competition since 1932! In the first round, France ousted Israel 5-0 before much more challenging clash against Australia in Nimes that went down the wire, with Fabrice Santoro defeating Wally Masur in the deciding fifth rubber to propel his country into the semis.
There, Yugoslavia stood no chance in Pau as France toppled them 5-0 to book the place in the final, the first since 1982. The French squad wasted the opportunity to lift the trophy at home in Grenoble that year, hoping for a better run in Lyon between November 29 - December 1. The United States was the defending champions who ousted Germany 3-2 in the semi-final after a lot of drama, traveling to France eager to defend the title for the first time since 1981-82 when they also did that on the French soil. The home nation took care to avoid that, though, with France dethroning the USA 3-1 for the first Davis Cup triumph in almost 60 years, delivering their best tennis against the rivals who destroyed them 5-0 in San Diego two years earlier in the quarter-final. Tom Gorman counted on two young guns who fought for the US Open crown in 1990, with Andre Agassi competing already for the fourth year in the national jersey and Pete Sampras who made his Davis Cup debut on the big scene in Lyon.
Against the Germans, Andre Agassi delivered two singles victories and it was a perfect start for him versus France as well, toppling Guy Forget 6-7, 6-2, 6-1, 6-2 in two hours and 53 minutes to deliver the opening point for the USA. The opening set lasted for 76 minutes and Forget claimed it 9-7 in the tie break after a lot of drama. Andre sprayed some 25 unforced errors in the first part of the match and that became a rare scene in the rest of the encounter, delivering only 16 in the remaining three sets to control his strokes beautifully and mount the pressure on the Frenchman who couldn't endure it. Landing one deep return after another and stepping in to take the ball early, Agassi ruled the courts in sets two, three and four to rattle off 18 of the last 23 games and leave the opponent far behind. In the second rubber, world no. 159 Henri Leconte stunned world no. 6 Pete Sampras 6-4, 7-5, 6-4 to earn the pivotal point for France ahead of the doubles rubber on Saturday.
After retiring at Wimbledon against Forget, Leconte played only four matches by the end of the season (undergoing back surgery) but there was nothing wrong with his tennis against Pete, prevailing in the crucial moments to seal the deal in straight sets and keep France alive. Five years after their debut against Bulgaria, Forget and Leconte did what they had to on Saturday, ousting Ken Flach and Robert Seguso, 6-1, 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 for the eighth victory in as many matches together. The French squad grabbed the opening set in 22 minutes and the American's couldn't earn a break chance until the third set when they claimed two return games to take it 6-4. Still, Forget and Leconte were back at their best in the fourth set, storming over their opponents to seal the deal and move France 2-1 in front.
On Sunday, Guy Forget delivered the first Davis Cup crown for France in 59 years following a 7-6, 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 triumph over Pete Sampras, playing better in the decisive moments to topple the better-ranked rival and start a massive celebration with his teammates and fans. Two competitors competed at that incredible Paris Masters final a month earlier, with Forget prevailing in just under four hours to gain the momentum ahead of this Davis Cup rubber where he had the support from the partisan crowd again. Pete converted only one out of 13 break points, claiming the second set despite a tight loss in the first but not being able to match the rival's pace in sets three and four. Forget stayed focused while serving for the third set, fending off three break chances and moving over the top with a forehand winner in the tenth game of the fourth set that earned the crowd for France.
from Tennis World USA https://ift.tt/34JQWpa
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