PARIS: Alexander Zverev beat three-time major winner Stan Wawrinka in the Davis Cup on Friday as the German star returned to the courts for the first time since being cleared of domestic abuse.
The 25-year-old Zverev swept past Wawrinka 6-4, 6-1 in Trier to bring Germany level with Switzerland after the opening day of their qualifier.
On Tuesday, Zverev was told by the ATP that there was “insufficent evidence” to substantiate allegations of abuse against former girlfriend Olya Sharypova.
Former world number two Zverev had always denied the claims, describing them as “baseless.”
On Friday, Wawrinka, who helped his country win the 2014 Davis Cup, was returning to the team competition for the first time in eight years.
Now ranked 135 in the world, he was comfortably beaten for the fifth time in five meetings by Zverev.
Marc-Andrea Huesler had earlier given Switzerland the lead with a 2-6, 6-2, 6-4 win over Oscar Otte.
The tie continues on Saturday with a doubles and two singles rubbers.
Mackenzie McDonald and Tommy Paul gave the United States a 2-0 lead in their qualifier against Uzbekistan.
McDonald, who knocked Rafael Nadal out of the Australian Open last month, eased past Sergey Fomin 6-4, 6-1 in Tashkent before Tommy Paul, a semifinalist at the season-opening Grand Slam in Melbourne, defeated Khumoyun Sultanov 6-1, 7-6 (8/6).
“It’s been amazing. It’s not something you get to do a lot throughout the year,” said Davis Cup debutant and 63rd-ranked McDonald.
Despite his lowly ranking of 480, Sultanov opened up a 4-0 lead in the second set over top-20 player Paul before the American’s greater experience paid off.
“He picked up his level a ton,” admitted Paul. “I felt like I wasn’t prepared for it.”
Of Saturday’s rubbers, he added: “A sweep would be nice — bring out the broomsticks!“
France, the 10-time champions, were 1-1 against Hungary in Tatabanya.
World number 182 Zsombor Piros stunned 45th-ranked Benjamin Bonzi 7-6 (7/4), 6-3 before Ugo Humbert levelled the qualifier by seeing off Marton Fucsovics 6-3, 6-2.
“It was my first match in the Davis Cup and I was very excited,” said 24-year-old Humbert, the world number 86.
“I tried to stay focussed on what I was doing and it went well.”
In Stockholm, Sweden opened up a 2-0 lead over Bosnia thanks to a couple of straight sets wins by brothers Mikael and Elias Ymer.
There are 12 ties taking place this weekend with the winners securing places in the group stage in September alongside defending champions Canada, 2022 runners-up Australia and wild cards Italy and Spain.
The eight best teams then go through to the Davis Cup Finals knockout stage in Malaga in November.
The qualifying matches taking place between Friday and Sunday are the first since the International Tennis Federation severed its controversial partnership with investors Kosmos less than five years after a 25-year deal was signed.
Zverev storms to Davis Cup win after being cleared of abuse
https://arab.news/5yvxg
Zverev storms to Davis Cup win after being cleared of abuse
- ATP told Zverev there was “insufficent evidence” to substantiate allegations of abuse against former girlfriend Olya Sharypova
Russell, Antonelli lead Mercedes in one-two qualifying positions for F1’s Australian GP
- Russell topped all three sessions in F1’s knockout qualifying format, finally casting aside questions of where Mercedes team was in the new-era pecking order
MELBOURNE: Mercedes has revealed its dominant hand during qualifying for Sunday’s Formula 1 Australian Grand Prix.
George Russell earned his ninth-career pole position Saturday ahead of his teammate Kimi Antonelli for the team’s 83rd front-row lockout and its first since the 2024 British Grand Prix.
Russell topped all three sessions in F1’s knockout qualifying format, finally casting aside questions of where Mercedes team was in the new-era pecking order. His pole time, at 1 minute, 18.518 seconds, was almost eight-tenths faster than the nearest non-Mercedes challenger, Red Bull rookie Isack Hadjar, who completed the top three.
“It was a great day, we knew there was a lot of potential in the car, but until we get to this first Saturday of the season, you never know,” Russell said. “But it really came alive this afternoon, especially when the track temperatures cooled, we know we tend to favor those conditions.”
Antonelli was relieved to have made it onto the front row alongside his teammate after a crash in final practice at the exit of turn two meant it was a race in the Mercedes garage to get him out for qualifying.
“It’s been a very stressful day. Unfortunately, I went into the wall (in FP3),” he said. “But the guys (in the garage) were the heroes today to put the car back on track.”
Hadjar was impressive by qualifying third on debut for Red Bull, his highest-ever grid position.
“The only thing I can do is take them at the start, but they’re just too fast at the moment,” Hadjar said of Mercedes. “I want to keep my position and a second podium would be cool.”
Ferrari showed it’s neck-and-neck with McLaren on pace, with just one and a half tenths seconds covering the four drivers just beyond the top-three — with Charles Leclerc qualifying fourth, McLaren’s Oscar Piastri and Lando Norris in fifth and sixth respectively, and Lewis Hamilton in seventh.
Racing Bulls showed they’ve taken a step forward over the winter, with New Zealander Liam Lawson eighth ahead of his highly-rated rookie teammate Arvid Lindblad.
The big surprise of the session came from four-time F1 world champion Max Verstappen, who triggered red flags at Melbourne’s Albert Park after he lost control of his Red Bull car in braking for turn one in the first half of Q1 and ended in the barriers.
The Dutchman, who was unhurt from the crash, though upset that his brakes locked up, will now start from the back of the grid.
F1 heads into a new era this year, with unprecedented changes across the chassis (car) and power unit, which now feature an almost 50:50 output split between the turbo 1.6-liter V6 engine and electrical energy harvested from the brakes, one that requires a new, often counterintuitive driving style from the drivers.
