Pure forcefulness were Horacio Zeballos and Maximo Gonzalez this Saturday on the brick dust of the Buenos Aires Lawn Tennis. The Argentine duo did not give chances to Jiri Lehecka and Thomas Macacwhom they defeated with great authority to seal the triumph of Argentina on Czech Republic in the Qualifiers series for the 2022 Davis Cup Finals. It was, according to the two, the best match they played together in this competition.
“Today everything worked out for us. We arrived very well prepared. We knew how the Czechs played because we had seen them a little and we were able to focus fully on ourselves, on what we had to do with our game. In addition, we went out on the pitch with the calm of knowing that Argentina was up 2-0, because the boys had a great day yesterday. That helped us start off with less nerves and play the game we did, which was the best together in Davis,” analyzed González, 24th in the ranking world doubles
His teammate, number five in the world, agreed: “We played very well. We knew that the Czech duo had played the last Davis Cup together and had achieved good results. And we went out on the court as if we were about to face the Bryan brothers, because in this kind of games the rankings often don’t matter. Still, we focused on ourselves. We did our little job, things went well and we were able to win the point. I’m happy to put Argentina back in the Finals.”
Zeballos and Gonzalez gave their rivals a tennis lesson. Solid with their tennis, quick to read the game of the Czechs and complementing each other well on the court, the man from Mar del Plata and the man from Tandil prevailed by a double 6-4. And they added another great triumph to the joint personal history, which in Davis has just three chapters and which only started in 2018.
That year they played their first match as a couple in this competition. It was with victory in the World Group Playoffs series that Argentina beat Colombia in San Juan 4-0. In March 2020, in the first round of qualifying for that year’s Finals, which were later canceled due to the pandemic, they lost in their second appearance together, in a 3-1 loss to the Colombians in Bogotá. They fell before one of the strongest pairs on the circuit, Robert Farah and Juan Sebastian Cabal. And last year, they added a victory in the clash against Belarus in the BALTC, which the national team won 4-1.
In the professional circuit they have more filming. They have played 13 tournaments at the ATP and Grand Slams level and conquered the ATP in Buenos Aires 2019, the year in which they played a good part of the calendar together. That season they also reached the finals in Córdoba and Eastbourne, the semis in Monte Carlo and the round of 16 at Wimbledon.
The Argentine duo played their best game as a couple in Davis. Photo Ferdinand of the Order
“With Horacio we know each other a lot and we play a lot together. Although we don’t usually do it on the circuit (Note: Zeballos has been competing regularly with Marcel Granollers for a couple of seasons), we know that when we come to Davis we have to do what works for us. Although it also depends on the rivals. This time, the little (Schwartzman) and Sebas (Báez) told us a little about what they had seen on the field on Friday, how the two Czechs served and how they faced the game, which helped us a lot to know what we could expect,” said González.
“This Davis is going to serve as an injection of positive energy. We played great with Machi. And now each one returns to the circuit, to continue with his schedule, but without losing contact with the whole team. I am very happy to have taken to Argentina to the Finals and to see her back up there”, concluded Zeballos.
The Argentine captain, meanwhile, had nothing but words of praise for his doubles players. “We have a very strong doubles, which is fundamental in Davis, because it gives the singles players peace of mind, who don’t have to wear themselves out playing all the points, and the whole team”, analyzed Guillermo Coria. “This Saturday, the boys did a great job. When they had to ‘mark the field’ they did it. They settled in, when one went down a little, immediately the other pushed him and went up again. They did it spectacular”.