Defending champions Spain will face the Czech Republic in the Davis Cup final after decisively proving once again that there is life beyond Rafael Nadal.
The world No. 2 skipped this weekend’s semi-final win over Israel in Murcia after being forced to rest an abdominal strain picked up in his recent run to the US Open last four.
It was a familiar scenario for the Spanish who defeated Argentina in last year’s final without the six-time Grand Slam title winner, sidelined from that encounter because of a knee injury.
On Saturday, doubles pair Tommy Robredo and Feliciano Lopez defeated Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram 7-6 (8/6), 6-7 (7/9), 6-4, 6-2 to give their team an unassailable 3-0 lead and a place in a seventh Davis Cup final.
In the Dec. 4 to Dec. 6 title match, which they will host, they’ll start overwhelming favorites to claim a fourth title having now won 17 straight Davis Cup home ties.
It will also give Spain captain Albert Costa a selection headache with Nadal and fellow top 10 player Fernando Verdasco, who was another semi-final absentee, likely to be fit.
“It was a question of taking our opportunities,” Robredo said. “The first two sets were very close, but then we played our best in the third and fourth sets.”
The Czechs, who opened up an unbeatable 3-0 lead over 2005 winners Croatia in Porec, will be playing in only their third final, and first since 1980 when they won their one and only title.
Spain had been 2-0 ahead overnight after David Ferrer had swept past Harel Levy 6-1, 6-4, 6-3 before Juan Carlos Ferrero, Nadal’s replacement, outclassed Dudi Sela 6-4, 6-2, 6-0.
Lopez and Robredo won the first set on the tiebreak and even had two set points in the second before the Israeli doubles specialists leveled.
Erlich then needed treatment on an injured elbow at 1-1 in the fourth set before the Spanish duo romped to victory.
“That was the point that we lost the match,” Ram said. “Jonathan couldn’t serve his best, but it’s tough to beat Spain on clay, even if we were healthy.”
Costa dedicated the victory to a young woman who died in floods caused by a torrential storm in Murcia on Wednesday. A minute’s silence was observed in her memory before the start of Friday’s first singles.
The Czech Republic reached their first final in 29 years when Tomas Berdych and Radek Stepanek defeated Lovro Zovko and Marin Cilic 6-1, 6-3, 6-4, a welcome straight-sets win coming after Friday’s two marathon singles which had taken almost 10 hours to complete.
In 1975, Czechoslovakia were runners-up to Sweden and then in 1980, led by Ivan Lendl, they beat Italy to win their lone title.
“I am extremely proud of these boys, the whole team. For the first time since 1980 the Czechs are in the Davis Cup final, but I hope that this time we will hold this cup under under the Czech name,” coach Jaroslav Navratil said.
In 1980 the Czech Republic was part of Czechoslovakia. The country split amicably into the Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1993 after the toppling of the communist regime in 1989.
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