Davis Cup: Canada, Argentina reach last eight

Denis Shapovalov delivered for Canada on Sunday under pressure, sending the last season’s champion to the Davis Cup Final 8 in Malaga. In the Group D match, Canada led 1-0 thanks to Shapovalov’s victory over Daniel Evans, 6-0, 7-5. Canada needed one point from their winner-take-all tie against Great Britain.

Argentina won 3-0 over Finland on Saturday in Manchester to move from Group D. Great Britain will now need to defeat Canada by the same margin in order to join Guillermo Coria’s team.

Evans, on the other hand, found it difficult to force an early advantage against Shapovalov, who unleashed 25 winners and saved both of his break points to secure the vital point for his country.

After qualifying, Felix Auger-Aliassime added the cherry on top when he defeated US Open semifinalist Jack Draper 7-6(8), 7-5 in two hours and seven minutes. Auger-Aliassime, who defeated British lefty Draper in Cincinnati to exact revenge, has performed admirably on Manchester’s hard courts this week, winning all three of his sets.

In the doubles, British pair Neal Skupski and Henry Patten defeated Gabriel Diallo and Alexis Galarneau 7-6(4), 6-4.

Italy won Group A thanks to Flavio Cobolli’s leadership. The reigning champion, ranked No. 32 in the PIF ATP Rankings, overcame Tallon Griekspoor 7-6(4), 4-6, 6-3 to take a 2-0 lead in their match against the Netherlands.

In order to qualify in second place in Group A based on sets differential, Brazil will need to defeat the Netherlands in the doubles rubber. against Sunday night, Simone Bolelli and Andrea Vavassori take against Wesley Koolhof and Botic van de Zandschulp.

Former Top 10 player Matteo Berrettini defeated van de Zandschulp 3-6, 6-4, 6-4 in the first match of the day to put Italy ahead. Despite upsetting Carlos Alcaraz at the US Open, Van de Zandschulp was unable to handle Berrettini’s might. Following his victory, the 28-year-old gave Jannik Sinner an embrace as the World No. 1 arrived in Bologna to support his compatriots.

Sinner defeated Novak Djokovic and Alex de Minaur to help Italy win the Davis Cup last year. Sinner won his second major championship at the US Open last week.

Canada and Italy join, Australia, Spain, United States, Germany and Argentina in the Final 8.

When Chile played Slovakia on Sunday in Zhuhai, the United States and Germany had already locked up the top two slots in Group C and qualified for the Final 8 in Malaga.

In the final match, Nicolas Jarry’s comeback enabled Chile to defeat Slovakia 2-1. Jarry teamed up with Tomas Barrios Vera to win a lengthy doubles battle against Norbert Gombos and Lukas Klein, 6-4, 6-7(3), 7-6(5).

After wasting three match points in the second set, the Chileans saved one in the third set to force a tie-break, which they ultimately prevailed in.

The result, twinned with Cristian Garin’s opening victory over Gombos, means that Chile sealed third place in the group ahead of Slovakia, improving their chances of claiming a seeded spot in the 2025 Qualifiers draw.

Australia and Spain met in Valencia in Group B; both teams having advanced to the Final 8. In the first match, Pablo Carreno Busta defeated Jordan Thompson 2-6, 6-2, 7-6(3) to give Spain a 1-0 lead. However, Alexei Popyrin, the champion of Montreal, upset Pedro Martinez 6-4, 6-4 to tie the scores for Australia.

Marcel Granollers and Pedro Martinez defeated Matthew Ebden and Max Purcell 5-7, 6-4, 6-4 in the decisive doubles match. Together with Thompson, a fellow citizen, Purcell recently won the US Open..