Third seed Daniil Medvedev survived a scare at the Australian Open as he came from two sets down to beat Emil Ruusuvuori in a match that finished at 3.40am.
Medvedev looked like he might have been in bed much earlier as the unseeded Finnish player took control.
But the Russian showed his fighting spirit to ensure that it turned into an early morning as he battled back to win 3-6 6-7 (1) 6-4 7-6 (1) 6-0, with sunrise two hours away.
Carlos Alcaraz came through a tough four-set battle with Italy’s Lorenzo Sonego on a day of close encounters for the big names.
Novak Djokovic’s struggles will have given heart to his rivals but few are finding the early stages of the tournament straightforward, and second seed Alcaraz needed three hours and 25 minutes to defeat Sonego 6-4 6-7 (3) 6-3 7-6 (3).
In a match full of shot-making, Alcaraz topped the highlight reel with two winners around the net post.
“I didn’t feel I had downs in the match,” said the Spaniard. “In the tie-break, he started to play an unbelievable game. I think he made some big returns after a good first serve from me.
“I think probably I could do something else in the tie-break. But the level that he played, it was really, really high.”
Sixth seed Alexander Zverev and 11th seed Casper Ruud both needed fifth-set tie-breaks to edge into round three.
Zverev looked in deep trouble down two sets to one against Slovakian qualifier Lukas Klein before recovering to win 7-5 3-6 4-6 7-6 (5) 7-6 (10/7).
The German said of his opponent: “I didn’t know him at all. To be honest, if he would have been in a room, I would have not known that he’s my opponent.
“But he played extremely well. He played very, very aggressive, hitting every single ball as hard as he could from both sides, I feel like. A lot of the times I was a spectator in the match. I was just witnessing whether he’s going to hit a winner or miss.
“That’s not a nice feeling to be in, especially in the important moments, but I’m happy that I managed to win.”
Zverev next faces American 19-year-old Alex Michelsen, who knocked out last year’s quarter-finalist Jiri Lehecka.
Ruud was given a huge battle by Australian Max Purcell, who twice fought back from a set down to force a decider before the Norwegian prevailed 10-7 in the deciding tie-break.
“He’s a really tricky player and a great tennis player in my eyes, even though he plays different from others,” said Ruud.
“I’m very happy with the win. He beat me in Cincinnati. The plan was to do things better from that time, and I think I did, and that was just enough to win the match.”
Eighth seed Holger Rune is out, though, as Frenchman Arthur Cazaux won 7-6 (4) 6-4 4-6 6-3.
Ebden and Thompson send Australia to third straight Davis Cup semi
Matthew Ebden and Jordan Thompson booked Australia's place in the Davis Cup semi-finals after the pair clinched their deciding match against the United States to win 2-1.
The pair, who won gold at the Paris Olympics, beat Tommy Paul and Ben Shelton 6-4 6-4 to put Lleyton Hewitt's side into their third successive semi-final at the men's team event.
Australia, who have won the tournament 28 times, largely had Thanasi Kokkinakis to thank after his remarkable triumph over Shelton in the first match of the day.
Kokkinakis saved four match points and let slip six of his own before eventually prevailing 6-1 4-6 7-6 (16-14) in an engrossing encounter that lasted two hours and 14 minutes.
However, in the rematch of a recent ATP Finals group-stage match, Taylor Fritz emerged victorious over Alex De Minaur as he did in Turin a week ago.
Despite De Minaur going 2-0 up in the second set, Fritz roared back to earn a 6-3 6-4 victory to send the tie the distance in Malaga.
But Australia held their nerve, and will discover their opponents later on Thursday when reigning champions Italy take on Argentina.
Ebden and Thompson’s win came after United States’ captain Bob Bryan opted for a late change, with Paul and Shelton replacing Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram.
“We were expecting the other pair, but we knew they’ve got incredible players who can play doubles,” said Ebden.
“We were ready. A slight adjustment obviously. More huge serving singles players than the doubles craft, maybe, but it was just as big a challenge as any.
"Out here, finals live match, just to play with Jordan here was real fun. Following what Kokk did, unfortunately Alex went down, but what a day. So fun, so happy.”
Data Debrief: Australia ready to right Davis Cup wrongs
Australia have failed to win the Davis Cup since 2003, but they will be confident of halting that streak this time around.
If they take the trophy, they will have reason to thank Kokkinakis, whose tie-break win against Shelton was the longest an Australian player had featured in at the tournament, surpassing Pat Rafter's win over David Rikl in the 1997 quarter-finals of the competition (15-13).
Ebden and Thompson also shone when it mattered most, serving four aces compared to Paul and Shelton's two, while also winning 92% of their first-serve points.
Paolini and Bronzetti seal fifth Billie Jean King Cup for Italy
Victories for Jasmine Paolini and Lucia Bronzetti handed Italy their fifth Billie Jean King Cup title as they overcame Slovakia in Wednesday's final in Malaga.
Italy, who were beaten in last year's final by Canada, overcame Poland in the semi-finals on Monday as Paolini partnered Sara Errani for a decisive doubles win over world number two Iga Swiatek and Katarzyna Kawa.
The showpiece contest began with Bronzetti triumphing 6-2 6-4 against Viktoria Hruncakova, before Paolini took to the court to face Rebecca Sramkova.
The world number four – who won doubles gold at the Paris Olympics in August to cap her breakout year – eased past Sramkova by a 6-2 6-1 scoreline to ensure a doubles match was not required.
Speaking after Italy claimed the trophy for the first time since 2011, Bronzetti heaped praise upon her team-mate and revealed she had struggled to sleep before playing in front of 12-time grand slam champion King.
"Jasmine raised her level really high this year. She's an example for all of us," Bronzetti said.
Asked about King's presence in the crowd, Bronzetti added: "She is a great person, a great legend. I didn't sleep very well.
"You're not playing just for yourself. You're playing for your team and your country. We all want this trophy, and it is our dream, all Italians."
Data Debrief: Five-star Italy
Italy have claimed their fifth Billie Jean King Cup, having previously triumphed in 2006, 2009, 2010 and 2013.
Only the United States (18), Czechoslovakia/Czechia (11) and Australia (seven) have won more. Spain and Russia (also including the USSR and Russian Tennis Federation) have also tasted success five times.
Germany set up Netherlands semi-final showdown at Davis Cup
Germany booked their place in the Davis Cup semi-finals after wrapping up a 2-0 victory over Canada in Malaga.
Daniel Altmaier and Jan-Lennard Struff were both victorious over Gabriel Diallo and Denis Shapovalov respectively, to set up a last-four clash with the Netherlands.
Germany were beaten 2-1 by Canada when the nations met at this stage of the 2022 Davis Cup, but they drew first blood when Altmaier came through a hard-fought clash with Diallo 7-6 (7-5) 6-4.
It looked like the tie would go to a doubles decider when former Wimbledon semi-finalist Shapovalov took the opening set against Struff.
But the world number 43 bounced back to prevail 4-6 7-5 7-6 (7-5) after two hours and seven minutes.
"Denis was playing amazingly, coming out firing," Struff said. "It was a very tough match. He was serving so well. It was tough to return. The court is very fast. An incredible match. I'm just happy to get over the line at the end."
On Friday's semi-final with the Dutch, he added: "It's a big step for us to go from the quarters to the semis. For sure, we want to win and go to the final now.
"Netherlands played an amazing match yesterday, beating Spain here in front of a home crowd. We expect a very tough opponent."
Data Debrief: Germany through as errors cost Canada
The two tie-breaks proved pivotal as the Germans secured only their second Davis Cup semi-final appearance since 2008 (also reaching that stage in 2021).
Though both sets were tight during the first match, Diallo hit 40 unforced errors to Altmaier's 17, and was 6-1 for double faults.
Similarly, in the second rubber, though Shapovalov was 27-8 for aces, 13 double faults to just four from Struff proved costly.
Altmaier and Struff's reward is a first meeting with the Netherlands since the 2001 quarter-finals, which the Dutch won 4-1.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
