American singles stars put the United States on the brink of a World Group return today.
Chris Eubanks won his Davis Cup debut to clinch a 2-0 lead for the USA after the first of its two-day Davis Cup Qualifying tie with Ukraine in Vilnius, Lithuania.
After Sebastian Korda outlasted a game Oleksii Krutykh, 6-3, 6-7(3), 6-4, Eubanks, subbing in for an injured Taylor Fritz (right hip), overpowered the 498th-ranked Viacheslav Bielinskyi, 6-3, 6-2.
The 6’7” Eubanks, nicknamed “Big Banks” by his teammates, asserted his authority from the start and performed like a veteran amid the pressure of his Davis Cup debut.
“We accomplished our goal. We were looking to get two points on the board today and I’m really happy with the result,” Captain Bryan said. “I love the way that Sebi fought. He faced some adversity there against a guy that was playing very high-level tennis. Sebi went over the top and played beautifully in the third to give us a 1-0 lead, and that was important, especially with Chris playing his first match.
“I’m so proud of Chris and Sebi, the way they’ve practiced and worked all week. It really showed in the tennis today. Chris played some really scary ball.”
The American doubles team of No. 3 Austin Krajicek and No. 5 Rajeev Ram now has the chance to clinch the tie for the U.S. in Friday’s first match, taking on the Ukrainian team of No. 301 Vitaliy Sachko and No. 947 Illya Beloborodko, beginning at 10 a.m. ET.
Thursday’s results and Friday’s schedule are below. The schedule could be amended if the U.S. clinches victory in the doubles or fourth singles, and captains may make substitutions to Friday’s lineups up to one hour prior to match time for the doubles and up to 15 minutes after the previous match for the singles.
A victory would clinch the Americans’ spot in the 16-nation Group Stage of the Davis Cup Finals, to be played across four TBD cities September 10-15. The top eight nations advancing out of Group Play will play in the Final 8 stage of the competition, a knockout-style quarterfinal bracket to be played in November in Malaga, Spain, that will crown the 2024 Davis Cup champion.
Thursday, February 1
Sebastian Korda (USA) d. Oleksii Krutykh (UKR), 6-3, 6-7(3), 6-4
Chris Eubanks (USA) d. Viacheslav Bielinskyi (UKR), 6-3, 6-2
Friday, February 2 (5 p.m. local / 10 a.m. ET)
Austin Krajicek / Rajeev Ram (USA) vs. Vitaliy Sachko / Illya Beloborodko (UKR)
Chris Eubanks (USA) vs. Oleksii Krutykh (UKR)
Sebastian Korda (USA) vs. Viacheslav Bielinskyi (UKR)