United States, Germany seal Davis Cup final eight berths | Tennis News – Times of India

NEW DELHI: The United States secured their place in the Davis Cup final eight with a 3-0 win over Slovakia in Zuhai on Friday. Germany also advanced to the next stage of the competition.
Mackenzie McDonald began the day by defeating Lukas Klein 6-4, 6-3 in singles. Following him, Brandon Nakashima won against Jozef Kovalik 6-3, 6-3, which gave the US an unbeatable 2-0 lead.
In the doubles match, Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram teamed up to beat Klein and Norbert Gombos 6-7 (4/7), 7-6 (7/4), 10-1.
Bob Bryan’s US team, playing without top players like Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe, also defeated Chile 3-0 earlier this week.
The US victory ensured that Group C rivals Germany also qualified for the Final 8, which will be held in Malaga from November 19-24.
The US and Germany will compete for the top spot in their group on Saturday, which will determine their seeding for Malaga.
Sixteen countries are participating in the group stage finals in four cities, with the top two teams from each group moving on to the final eight.
“It means a lot,” said 40th-ranked Nakashima, as quoted by AFP.
“To be able to be in this position right now, to be clinching that spot, it’s very important for us.”
The US, 32-time tournament champions with their last win in 2007, failed to advance beyond the group stage last year following losses to the Netherlands and Finland.
McDonald, ranked 149, has been making a comeback after an injury-ridden season.
“I’m really proud of myself for performing well today and putting the team on the board,” he said.