Tennis
Canada trails Netherlands 2-0
(The Hague) Canada will have to come from behind on hostile ground on Saturday to hope to qualify for the Davis Cup Finals, after setbacks in the first two singles matches of the qualifier against the Netherlands -Bas, in The Hague.
Despite great efforts, rookie Alexis Galarneau first lost in straight sets 7-5, 7-6 (9) to Botic van de Zandschulp, 48and player in the world, after a match that lasted two hours and 19 minutes.
Subsequently, Tallon Griekspoor, ranked 54anddefeated Steven Diez, 294and world player, in two identical sets of 6-4.
Diez had just one broken serve in two attempts in the first game of the second set and faced 16 break points. The Dutchman capitalized on three of them, including in the last games of each of the two sets.
A doubles match and two other singles duels are scheduled to take place on Saturday. Matches are played on clay.
The winning country will earn its place in the Davis Cup Finals, which will take place next fall. The loser will have to redo his classes in Group I of his region, in September.
Missed Opportunities
Rated 332and in the world, Galarneau, a Laval resident who celebrated his 23and birthday on Wednesday, failed to exploit his service rival’s troubles.
Van de Zandschulp only scored one ace, committed eight double faults and faced 12 break points. Galarneau only converted four and was himself the victim of five service breaks in seven occasions.
In the first set, Galarneau conceded a crucial break in the 11and game, thus giving his rival an opportunity to complete the first set on his service. The Dutchman didn’t miss his chance, earning the necessary four points without conceding a single one.
During the 12and game of the second set, Galarneau got three set points on van de Zandschulp’s serve, and a fourth in the tiebreaker, but the latter resisted each time.
Galarneau also showed guts during this break by overcoming three match points, before finally giving up the victory to his more experienced rival.
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Sophia Jhon is a sports journalist and author. He has worked as a news editor for Sportish and is now a sport columnist for the same publication. Alberta’s professional interests lie largely in sports news, with an emphasis on English football. He has also written articles on other sporting topics.