11/18/25 02:24:00
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11/18 14:23 CST Bergs leads Belgium into Davis Cup semifinals with win over
France
Bergs leads Belgium into Davis Cup semifinals with win over France
BOLOGNA, Italy (AP) --- Zizou Bergs beat Arthur Rinderknech 6-3, 7-6 (4) to
send Belgium into the Davis Cup semifinals with an unassailable 2-0 lead over
10-time champion France on Tuesday.
Belgium had lost its last four meetings with France, including in the 2017
final. It will face either No. 1 Italy or Austria on Friday. The last two
quarterfinals will be held Thursday, including No. 2 Germany against Argentina,
and Spain against the No. 4-seeded Czech Republic.
Bergs was in control throughout and sealed the match with a superb forehand
winner down the line.
Earlier, Raphael Collignon rallied past Corentin Moutet 2-6, 7-5, 7-5 to give
Belgium a 1-0 lead. Ties are played as a best-of-three matches: two singles and
one doubles.
Both nations were back at this stage of the team competition since it was
revamped in 2019. The Davis Cup Final 8 in Bologna is the sixth edition of the
event to have the champion decided at a neutral site.
Moutet played solid tennis until the 12th game of the second set when he hit
two double faults and fluffed an easy point at the net after trying a
between-the-legs shot, dropping his serve as Collignon forced a decider.
A similar scenario unfolded in the third set as Collignon made the decisive
break in the final game.
"It was a crazy match," Collignon said.
Spain is without top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz, who withdrew earlier Tuesday
because of a hamstring injury.
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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis
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