Bopanna, Somdev go down fighting in Davis Cup (Roundup)

CHENNAI - Rohan Bopanna and Somdev Devvarman ran out of steam at the fag end of marathon five-setters as Brazil took a 2-0 lead against India by winning both the singles matches in the Davis Cup World Group playoffs here Friday.

In the first singles, Thomaz Bellucci, down 2-5 in the fifth set, saved three matches points to beat Rohan Bopanna 6-7 (2), 7-6 (7), 7-5, 4-6, 10-8, in four hours, 28 minutes and then Ricardo Mello made it 2-0 for the visitors by defeating Somdev Devvarman 4-6, 6-2, 6-7 (3), 6-2, 6-4 in the second match that lasted four hours, 12 minutes.

On Saturday, India’s top pair Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes will be under pressure to deliver by winning the doubles to keep the home team’s hopes alive.

For India, it was a huge let-down to see both Bopanna and Devvarman squandering winning chances while the Brazilians displayed admirable resilience, fitness and aggression to hang in there.

Bopanna, ranked 479, played inspired tennis to stretch the 27th ranked Bellucci in the first singles, and Devvarman (113) squandered a 2-1 advantage to let Mello (75) off the hook.

Brazil team captain Joao Zwetsch summed up quite aptly when he said: “We could have lost both the matches today, but we won and we are happy with that.

“Thomaz made an unbelievable comeback in the fifth set. Ricardo fought hard and played clever tennis in the end.”

After Bopanna’s splendid display in the first singles, it was left to Devvarman to salvage the situation for India and he almost did, but seemed to be worse off than his opponent in the fifth set.

“I was lucky to win today. It was tough, but I stayed focused in the fifth set. I thought I served well in the end. I was aggressive and it made the difference,” said Mello who returned to Davis Cup after a break of three years during which his ranking nosedived before he made his way back into the team through his ranking.

Devvarman played as well as expected, but on the day, Mello won the crucial points, especially in the fifth set to make the difference between winning and losing.

“I am obviously disappointed, but both the matches could have gone the other way. I led 2-1 after three highly physical sets, but had a shocking fourth set that I lost.

“This is something I need to work on. I guess, it comes with experience to press on when you are ahead. But, like I said, it was anybody’s match,” said Devvarman.

The match turned irrevocably in Brazil’s favour when Mello broke Devvarman in the ninth game of the fifth set for a 5-4 lead and then served aggressively to wrap up the tie.

In the first singles, Bopanna had more of the chances to wrap up the match, but time and again, he blew away breakpoints besides throwing away three matchpoints in the marathon fifth set.

In contrast, Bellucci’s superior staying power swung the match in his favour as the Brazilian No.1 showcased his resilience to hang in there through 268 minutes that the match lasted.

“It was not as if I wasted the chances in the fifth set when I was leading 5-2. It is just that my lack of singles play made the difference. I guess, I wasn’t ready to play for four-and-a-half hours,” Bopanna said.

If anything, it was an intriguing contest marked by huge number of unforced errors and blazing winners by both players who, despite the disparity in ranking, appeared evenly matched.

“It was very tough and I was tired. I don’t know how I broke him late in the fifth set,” said Bellucci who took a break when trailing 2-5 to receive medical attention for cramps in his leg.

”It (the cramps) was the first time for me.”

Bopanna started strongly in the first set, but the Brazilian counter-punched his way to save breakpoints in the second and sixth games to force the tie-breaker where the Indian’s superior serving tilted the scales.

The second set that began with the players trading service breaks in the opening two games before settling down to get into another tie-break that Bellucci just about managed to clinch.

Two breaks of serve saw Bellucci serving for the third set at 5-4, only to have Bopanna fighting back to 5-5. However, the Brazilian tightened up to clinch it 7-5 after a break of serve in the 11th for a 2-1 advantage.

“I was very tired in the fourth set, but I took a toilet break, came back refreshed. The crowd support also lifted me, but he played some fantastic shots,” said Bopanna broke the Brazilian in the 10th game to push the match into the decider in which Bellucci saved three matchpoints to recover from 2-5 to eventually win 10-8.