News Sports: Australia advanced to the final of the Davis Cup for the first time in 19 years by defeating Croatia 2-1 in Malaga, Spain on Friday. Next is Canada or Italy. Max Purcell and Jordan Thompson scored the winning points for Australia with 6-7(3) 7-5 6-4 wins over Mate Pavich and Nikola Mektic. Shortly before the game, Australian captain Lleyton Hewitt sent Thompson in as a substitute for Matthew Ebden. Matthew Ebden teamed with Purcell to win the Wimbledon doubles title, defeating defending champions Pavich and Mektic in the All England Club final.
Australia’s Alex De Minaur defeated Marin Cilic 6-2, 6-2 while Borna Coric beat Tanasi Kokkinakis 6-4, 6-3 to put Croatia ahead.
The first set was a hard-fought battle until the Czech duo stepped up to break through the tiebreak. But Purcell and Thompson never flinched, and in the second frame he took a 6-5 lead and held serve to create a crucial opportunity. Purcell and Thompson took a 4-3 lead and set up their next two service games as Australia reached the finals for the first time since 2003, when they won their 28th title.
Although he didn’t have a single break point in the 44th-minute game, Cilic struggled with his 10th inning double from the service line.