Davis Cup, Belgium surprises France: now Italy or Austria

Belgium in the Davis Cup semifinals, and this is important news for Italy as well. Should the Azzurri beat Austria, in fact, they will be the very next opponents of the selection that surprisingly managed to get the better of the more emblazoned France. Credit to Raphael Collignon and Zizou Bergs, who were able to prevail in their respective matches over Corentin Moutet and Arthur Rinderknech. An unexpected 2-0, propelling the “Red Devils” into the semifinals after eight years.

Particularly epic was Collignon’s victory over Moutet, which came not only against a particularly fearsome opponent but also in a comeback after conceding the first set to the transalpine. The final scoreboard reads 2-6, 7-5, 7-5 for Belgium in the first challenge of the day, reflecting the difficulties its protagonist went through in the first set before turning the tide in the next two.

Bergs, on the other hand, needed only two sets to get the better of Rinderknech, although the second was resolved only at the tie-break. Indeed, it ended 6-3, 7-6(4), with the first set decided by the break in the fourth game against a particularly nervous transalpine who was also uncomfortable with the strings of his racket. There were two service changes in the second set, in the fifth and tenth games, before the final that gave the round 2-0 to Belgium.

Now the match between Italy and Austria, scheduled for Wednesday, Nov. 19, is awaited to determine the next Davis Cup date for a Belgium also galvanized by beating one of its historic “black beast”. Indeed, numerous defeats against France in the competition, particularly over the past 28 years. Particularly famous was the one in 2017, since it even reached the final.