Chennai: In a stunning turnaround, Somdev Devvarman and Rohan Bopanna powered India to the elite Davis Cup World Group by scripting a sensational 3-2 win over Brazil in the play-off tie on Sunday.

Making amends for their opening-day defeats, Somdev and Bopanna downed their higher-ranked rivals in a do-or-die situation and led India to its first ever win in a Davis Cup tie from a 0-2 deficit.


Sweden has the most 0-2 comeback wins in the Davis Cup history with five victories and only once a team has won a final from 0-2 scoreline when Australia defeated USA in 1939.

A dominant Somdev led 7-6 (3), 4-0 before world number 27 Thomaz Bellucci conceded the first revesre singles, failing to negotiate hot and humid conditions and thus allowing India to level the tie 2-2.

The 479th-ranked Bopanna then came out firing on all cylinders to beat 75th-ranked Ricardo Mello...

Chennai: Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi rediscovered their magic of old to win the crucial doubles tie as India stayed afloat in their Davis Cup World Group playoff tie against Brazil on Saturday.

Paes and Bhupathi, multiple Grand Slam winners in the men's doubles, handed out a crushing 6-4, 7-6(5), 6-1 defeat to Brazilians Marcelo Melo and Bruno Soares in two hours and 19 minutes as India, who had lost both the opening singles on Friday, reduced the leeway to 1-2 going into Sunday's reverse singles.

It was certainly a wonderful exhibition of doubles play by the top ranked Indian duo who come together only during representative tournaments like the Davis Cup after their acrimonious split a few years ago.

Incidentally, it was at the SDAT Stadium that their golden run had begun in 1999 when Paes and Bhupathi won the doubles title in the ATP tournament and went on to win several Slams to be ranked...

Peter Polansky heads into this weekend's Davis Cup tennis matchup as Canada's go-to guy.
After Polansky's strong performance this summer, team captain Martin Laurendeau handed the 22-year-old Thornhill, Ont., native the No. 1 spot for the best-of-five playoff against the Dominican Republic at the Rexall Centre.
On the line will be a spot in the Americas Zone Group I, which is a tier below the exclusive World Group. Canada is ranked 38th in Davis Cup play while the Dominicans are No. 47.
Polansky will open the tie Friday against Dominican No. 2 Jhonson Garcia.
Polansky, ranked 176th in the world, says he's ready for the pressure that comes with being Canada's top player, but he feels he'll also have plenty of help.
“(Being No. 1) probably means I'll have to be more of a leader,” Polansky said at Thursday's draw. “But I think (Laurendeau's) right when he calls this the deepest group of guys we've had in...

Novak Djokovic makes a swift return to action when he plays for Serbia against the Czech Republic in the Davis Cup semi-finals in Belgrade on Friday.

The 23-year-old, beaten by Rafael Nadal in the delayed US Open final on Monday, will bid to help Serbia reach their first final as an independent nation.
France face Argentina in the other semi-final, also on indoor hardcourt.

Roger Federer, who lost to Djokovic in the US Open, misses Switzerland's play-off with Kazhakstan to rest.

I need some extra time to relax after the intense weeks in North America so I can finish the year strongly, said Federer, who has dropped to world number three.

Switzerland, beaten 4-1 by Spain in the first round this year, need to win the tie to play in the World Group next season.

The United States travel to Colombia for their play-off match, having dropped out of the World Group only once since it was introduced in 1981.
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LYON, France: France rubber-stamped their Davis Cup final place in style by completing an emphatic 5-0 victory over Argentina in their semi-final here on Sunday.

Leading 4-0 after Gilles Simon's 7-6 (7/5), 6-7 (6/8), 6-3 defeat of Eduardo Schwank earlier in the day, France secured the whitewash when Arnaud Clement beat Horacio Zeballos 7-5, 6-1 in the final singles rubber.

It was France's second straight 5-0 win in the competition, following a quarter-final demolition of defending champions Spain.

They also defeated Germany 4-1 in the first round.

France will face either Serbia or the Czech Republic, who meet in Belgrade this weekend, in the Davis Cup final on December 3-5.

Sunday's two singles matches were rendered dead rubbers by the straight sets victory of Clement and Michael Llodra against Schwank and Zeballos in Saturday's doubles match, which gave France an unassailable 3-0 lead.
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SPLIT, Croatia: Serbia, led by world number two Novak Djokovic, qualified for the Davis Cup semifinals after a 4-1 victory over Croatia.

Djokovic earned the decisive point by beating Marin Cilic 6-3, 6-3, 6-2 in the first singles match of the day. In its first ever semifinal, Serbia will play against the Czech Republic.

Meanwhile, David Nalbandian led Argentina into the semis against France after a straight-sets victory over Mikhail Youzhny in the deciding rubber of the quarter-final tie against Russia. Nalbandian, 28, beat Youznhy 7-6 (7/5), 6-4, 6-3, his third win over the Russian in four head-to-head meetings.

The victory for the South Americans ended Russia’s 17-match winning streak in the Davis Cup on home turf, which started after the 1995 defeat in the final at the hands of the United States.

Elsewhere, France completed a 5-0 whitewash of defending champions Spain. Julien Benneteau and Gilles Simon won their dead rubbers against Feliciano Lop ez and Nicolas Almagro in straight sets,...

Serbia reached their first Davis Cup semi-final as Novak Djokovic beat Marin Cilic to give them victory over fierce rivals Croatia.

His 6-3 6-3 6-2 win made it 3-1 to set up a semi against the Czech Republic.
Argentina will face France in the final four after clinching a 3-2 win over Russia in a tense tie in Moscow.
Russia's Nikolay Davydenko beat Eduardo Schwank 4-6 6-3 6-1 6-4 to make it 2-2, but David Nalbandian won the decider, beating Mikhail Youzhny in three sets.
His 7-6 (7-5) 6-4 6-3 victory ended Russia's 17-tie unbeaten home run in the Davis Cup stretching back to 1996.
Nalbandian, who missed much of last season through injury and has been sidelined since April with a hamstring problem, said: I'm happy with my playing here but I'm not surprised at all, even though I had no official match practice since April.
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