Statham stuns Cuevas to clinch Davis Cup tie for New Zealand
New Zealand’s most capped Davis Cup player Rubin Statham has produced one of the performances of his career to clinch the winning point in the World Group 1 Playoff tie against Uruguay in Las Vegas.
The New Zealand number one has beaten former world number 19 Pablo Cuevas in straight sets 7-6 (3) 6-2 in an hour and 43 minutes to clinch a superb 3-1 victory for New Zealand.
Statham playing in a record 33rd tie for his country adapted well to the freezing temperatures and blustery conditions and pushed Cuevas hard in a tight opening set. Games went with serve until the 8th game when the Kiwi dropped serve leaving Cuevas to serve for the set. But the Uruguayan wilted and was broken straight back. The set went to a tie break and Statham went up a mini break at 4-2, lost the advantage on the next point but then won both Cuevas’s service points to bring up three set points at 6-3. He duly converted to claim the opening set in an hour and one minute.
After holding serve to start the second set, Statham broke Cuevas’s serve with a big return follow to the net and finished with a forehand cross court volley. He dug deep in the next service game from 15-40 to hold for a 3-0 lead. Cuevas kept fighting but couldn’t find a way to break back and Statham completed quite possibly the best win of his Davis Cup career, given all he has been through the past two years with major injuries.
Cuevas may not quite the same player who broke into the top 20 in the ATP rankings in 2016 and who has beaten Rafael Nadal on clay, but he’s still ranked 106 and is a seasoned pro.
Earlier Michael Venus and Artem Sitak showed their class as doubles specialists, winning the doubles rubber 6-3 6-4 against Cuevas and Ariel Behar to put New Zealand 2-1 up.
It’s a sweet victory for Kelly Evernden in his first Davis Cup tie as New Zealand captain after enjoying a stellar playing career representing his country in the late 1980s and early 1990s.
New Zealand advance to September’s World Group 1 qualifiers while Uruguay drops down to World Group 2.
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