ITF

ITFWorld // WINTER 2018 15 outmaneuvered Chardy 62 75 64 as Croatia stayed on course to extend their winning streak on clay to seven ties and prolong an undefeated run on the road dating back to 2015. Commenting on his selections after both had suffered straight-set losses, Noah, who was bringing down the curtain on his third spell as France Davis Cup captain, said: "You can try to rewrite history but it does not work that way." Regardless of the whys and wherefores, France, who were without their three top-ranked players – Richard Gasquet through injury and the overlooked Gael Monfils and Gilles Simon – were now staring down the barrel. Temporary respite came in the form of the doubles as multiple Grand Slam winners Nicolas Mahut and Pierre- Hugues Herbert defeated Croatia's Ivan Dodig and Mate Pavic 64 64 36 76(3) to give France renewed hope. But even with the score at 2-1, Davis Cup archives showed there had only been eight instances of a recovery from that margin in the final, with France having achieved the feat in 1927, although Croatia did have the psychological burden of 2016 to wrestle with. For France, the onus now fell on Pouille, who had surged into the Top 10 in March, while also clinching France's 3-1 Davis Cup quarterfinal victory over Italy by beating Andreas Seppi in five sets and Fabio Fognini in four. However, back and leg injuries impeded his progress in 2018 and by the time the final rolled around he had lost eight times in the opening round of a tournament during the season. Ultimately, any French belief revived from their doubles joy proved nothing more than a false dawn as their bid to become the sixth nation to retain their Davis Cup title since the Challenge Round was abolished in 1972 dissipated in the imposing shadow of Cilic. Croatia have now won their last five ties in the competition, something they had not achieved since 2004-06, which will put them in prime form when they take their place in the revamped Davis Cup Finals in Madrid in November 2019. As for their present day prosperity, it was left to captain Peter Krajan to perhaps sum it up in the most succinct fashion. He said: "This is one of the best teams we've ever had – it's like a dream team." ■ "This is one of the best teams we've ever had – it's like a dream team." P E T E R K R A J A N Jo-Wilfried Tsonga struggled with injury but completed his singles rubber against Marin Cilic Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut gave France renewed hope with victory in the doubles ABOVE: Croatia fans were in fine voice inside Stade Pierre Mauroy

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