The U.S. men's tennis team celebrates its Davis Cup quarterfinals win over Belgium on April 7, 2018 in Nashville, Tenn.
The heavily favored American men’s tennis team lived up to expectations, dispatching Belgium – and earning a spot in the Davis Cup semifinals for the first time since 2012 – this weekend at Belmont University in Nashville, Tennessee.
The U.S., which won all four matches over Belgium, has won the Davis Cup 32 times, more than any other nation, but is seeking its first title since 2007. The Americans will play Croatia in the semifinals Sept. 14-16.
The weekend began with John Isner beating Joris De Loore 6-3, 6-7 (4), 7-6 (8), 6-4, and Sam Querrey defeating Ruben Bemelmans in straight sets 6-1, 7-6 (5), 7-5 Friday. Isner was coming off a win in the Miami Open and the hard-fought win against De Loore was just what the U.S. needed to start things off.
Querrey, ranked 14th in the world, had a slightly easier time with Bemelmans – 6-1, 7-6 (5), 7-5 – to put the U.S. ahead 2-0 and needing just one more victory to earn the semifinal spot.
Ryan Harrison, half of the reigning French Open doubles championship team, and Jack Sock delivered in their doubles match against Sander Gille and Joran Vliegen on Saturday, winning 5-7, 7-6 (1), 7-6 (3), 6-4 in a match that took three hours.
Then on Sunday, Harrison defeated Bemelmans 6-3, 6-4.
The U.S. improved to 5-0 over Belgium, which reached the final in two of the last three years, in the Davis Cup.
Croatia advanced to the semifinals with a 3-1 victory over Kazakhstan in Varazdin, Croatia, this weekend. France faces Spain in the other semifinal. France clinched its berth with a 3-1 win over Italy, while Spain beat Germany 3-2.
Karen Price is a reporter from Pittsburgh who has covered Olympic sports for various publications. She is a freelance contributor to TeamUSA.org on behalf of Red Line Editorial, Inc.
