Subhi Agrawal
Great Britain showed the strength of their singles impressively in their opening Davis Cup group stage match in Manchester. Newcomer Billy Harris led the team to a 2-1 victory over Finland due to Jack Draper’s absence.
Andy Murray’s Responsibility Of Representing The Team
During the early career of Andy Murray, was the top British man to top inside 200 ranks. He had to take the responsibility of representing the British tennis team almost entirely on his own and his underperformance usually meant defeat.
Since Murray’s retirement, the first Davis Cup tie showed the competitive strength of Great Britain as Harris led the team to victory.
Dan Evans and Neal Skupski were defeated 7-6 (4), 7-5 by Harri Heliövaara and Otto Virtanen in a double match, a loss that could be major if Great Britain ends up tied with another team later in the week.
A year after leading Great Britain to the quarter-finals with excellent performances, Evans faced a tough opening set against Eero Vasa, who played far above his No. 703 ranking, before winning 7-6 (3), 6-2. Harris stayed calm under increasing pressure in his Davis Cup debut and secured the tie with a strong victory of 6-4, 7-6 (4) over Virtanen.
Harris is one of the brightest players who relies on his strong serve and forehand to impose himself on opponents. After going up 6-4, 4-2, he found himself in a tense tussle. However, he stayed calm and secured one of the biggest wins of his growing career.
“I Went Out And Played A Good Match”
“I think that’s about one of the best debuts you’ll have seen. It was that good,” Leon Smith, the British captain stated, reported by The Guardian.
“It was always going to be tough playing No 1 with Jack and Cam and people not around. I went out and played a good match so I’m pleased with it,” said Harry
Over the past few years, Harris has experienced a surprise breakout and highlighted by a remarkable grass-court season. This included reaching his first ATP semi-final in Eastbourne and a quarter-final at the ATP 500 event at Queen’s.
“Three years ago I was probably ranked about 600 so I had no chance of getting near the team.But I’ve been improving each year since then and feel like I was ready to step into the team once I got called up. It’s a very proud moment to represent my country and I’m happy I put in a good performance,” Harry said.
Despite the team performing well at the match, Draper’s presence will be important for Great Britain’s chances of reaching the quarter-finals in Málaga.
“Hopefully he’s available to be an option for Friday.Pretty sure he will be. I think it was just a little bit too quick a turnaround in my eyes,” Smith said.
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