The endless US Tunnel at Davis

2022-11-24T21:55:55.077Z

The most successful team and with the most participation in the competition loses against Italy (2-1), quoted with Canada or Germany, and links 15 years without winning the Salad Bowl

They are 15 years, three decades, an outrage if the potential and the magnitude of the eliminated one are taken into account.

The United States, the creator of the competition (1900), the team that has the most Davis Cup titles (32) and runners-up (29), the one that has participated the most times (36) and the one with the largest economic fund for nurture his base tennis, returned to leave empty after giving up yesterday in the quarterfinal series against Italy (1-2).

Despite the fact that Taylor Fritz (7-6 (8) and 6-3 to Lorenzo Musetti) managed to make up for the surprising initial defeat of Frances Tiafoe against Lorenzo Sonego (6-3 and 7-6 (7), he could not avoid the last blush North American for the subsequent stumble of his teammates in the doubles turn.

There, the seniority of Simone Bolelli (37) and Fabio Fognini (35) overwhelmed the unprecedented duo formed by Jack Sock and Tommy Paul (double 6-4), and the old dominator was portrayed once again.

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The last victory for the USA dates back to 2007, when they had Andy Roddick, James Blake and the brothers Bryan, Mike and Bob in their ranks, and they overwhelmingly prevailed over Russia.

Since then, doubts and more doubts.

Disappointment after disappointment.

His seedbed produces and produces, but it still hasn't found the star that pulls the bandwagon

–no Connors, McEnroes, Couriers, Agassis, Sampras, Roddicks

…– and his youngsters tend to wrinkle in a competition that devours the hesitant. most minimal.

Installed in the 19th rung of the

ranking

, Tiafoe had just reached the semifinals of the US Open this summer and offered hopeful signs in his game, but his recovery was reduced to shreds on the Carpena court.

He failed first, and then there was the final skid of the couple formed by Sock and Paul.

Inexperienced, they crashed and all eyes turned to captain Mardy Fish, who bet on them instead of incorporating Rajeev Ram, champion last Sunday of the Masters Cup along with the British Joe Salisbury.

"It is my choice, the team that I have decided to put on the track, so if someone has a problem, it is up to me", introduced the coach.

“Nobody wants to win the Davis Cup more than me;

before as a player, and now as a captain, but… It's been 22 years for me, since 2000 [when he was called up for the first time, although he made his debut in 2002]”, lamented the coach.

Surprising Sonego

Fish stressed that his project is "under construction."

He recalled that his oldest player is Sock (30) and that his team still have a long way to go in the competition.

The intermediate generation gains ground, today it has nine tennis players in the

top-50

of the ATP and there are new talents that are acquiring shine, in the case of Sebastian Korda (22), Jenson Brooksby (22) or Brandon Nakashima (21). , the latter recently crowned in the Masters of the promises;

however, the journey does not end and criticism intensifies.

The great giant is still dry.

Between the 1980s and 2010, the United States lifted six Salad Bowls and moved ahead of Australia, but it longs for the old days and desperately searches for a totem pole.

🤚😁🤚

Sonego signs a great start to the day by beating Tiafoe 6-3 7-6(7)#DavisCup #byRakuten #Final8 |

@federtennispic.twitter.com/kN2Xa4yXy5

– Davis Cup (@CopaDavis) November 24, 2022

"How's Thanksgiving going?" Ram tweeted on Thursday, in what was interpreted as a wake-up call after the American elimination.

"This tournament is different, it's magnificent to be able to play under this atmosphere," said Sonego, the protagonist of the series with his victory against Tiafoe, who had defeated him less than a month ago in Bercy.

"He has a lot of energy, he was training very well and he wanted to do something really good, so we knew that maybe you didn't expect it, but we did," Filippo Volandri congratulated his player, present in Malaga due to the absences of Yannik Sinner and Matteo Berrettini , both injured.

Despite these two losses of maximum weight, Italy smiles and returned eight years later to the semifinals;

The last time he set foot on them was in 2014, then beaten by Roger Federer's Switzerland.

He is only two steps away from ending a more than pronounced drought, since he lifted his only title in 1976, almost half a century ago.

This Saturday they will face Canada or Germany for a place in the final, while Australia and Croatia will clash this Friday (4:00 p.m., Movistar) after having beaten the Netherlands (2-0) and Spain (2-1) respectively.