The list of non-goers is equally impressive. The United States, France, Argentina, Australia, Serbia and Belgium all missed out, depriving the usual suspects of the most decorated nations in the tournament’s history and the three most recent Davis Cup finalists.
Davis Cup Qualifiers Round 2 – Results
- Spain – Chile 4-0
- Germany – Croatia 3-1
- Great Britain beat Ecuador 4-0
- Austria – Belgium 3-1
- Korea, India 3-1
- Czech Republic – USA 3-2
- Canada – France 3-1
2. South Korea reached the final 8 for the first time, and they did so by sweeping the singles matches
South Korea made history of their own at the Olympic tennis court in Seoul on Saturday, defeating India 3-1 to reach the quarter-finals for the first time. They are the first Asian country to reach the final 8 in the reformed format.
Korea, led by Yong-Sam Chung, won the singles match. Sonwoo Kwon and Heon Chung both bounced back on Friday, with Kwon handing Dakshineswar Suresh his first Davis Cup loss after being broken in his opening service game. In the second set, the Korean returned to the baseline, made four double faults from the Indian and sealed it in the tenth game of the decider.
Kwon then sealed the tie Saturday afternoon with a 6-1, 6-2 win over a grueling Sumit Nagal that lasted 68 minutes. He fell to the ground when Nagal’s return sailed wide and was mobbed by his teammates.
“It means a lot to qualify for the Final 8 in Bologna,” Kwon said. “I am very proud of my country. When I play in a team, I know I can’t let my teammates down. The fans in Seoul brought that momentum to my advantage.”
3. Zverev is still rolling and Germany looks like a problem for everyone
Alexander Zverev went from the US Open final to Halle without losing his rhythm. He beat world No. 171 Matej Dodig 6-4, 7-6 (3) on Friday, then sealed the tie on Saturday with a backhand volley to beat Dino Prismic 6-2, 6-4 to end Croatia’s hopes of a first final since 2023. Germany won 3-3.
Between those two victories came the point that mattered most. Kevin Kravitz and Tim Puetz beat Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic 7-5, 6-2 to give Germany a 2-1 lead, the pair are now a combined 18-2 in Davis Cup. “That was probably the best doubles match we’ve ever played in Davis Cup,” Kravitz said.
Germany have not won the competition since 1993 and have reached the semi-finals in each of the last two seasons. Zverev, who was not born when Germany last lifted the trophy, said before the match that he wanted to “take the opportunity to win the Davis Cup with this group”.
“The Davis Cup here at home in front of the home fans was unbelievable,” he said. “Davis Cup is just that for me.”
4. Ben Shelton lost twice and the USA is out again
The Czech Republic beat the United States 3-2 in Prague, knocking them out at this stage for the second year in a row and making their fourth consecutive Finals appearance, fifth overall.
Ben Shelton lost both of his singles. Jiri Lehecka beat him on Friday, then Jakub Mensik came back to win 5-7, 6-4, 6-3 on Saturday to level the tie at 2-2 and hand the decider to Lehecka, which the Czech won against Learner Tien 6-3, 7-5. Shelton refused to make excuses. “He outplayed me today. He served great, returned great.”
The Pole’s 14th Davis Cup singles win tied him with Lukas Rosol for fourth on the Czech Republic’s all-time list, and he immediately transferred the credit elsewhere.
“Without the win over Jakubi Ben, I wouldn’t have had the chance to play the final match,” he said. “This is a team competition, and this was a team effort, and that’s more important than being called a national hero.”
5. Holger Rohn played his first matches in 11 months, winning two of them
Rooney hadn’t played since tearing his left Achilles 11 months ago. He returned to Copenhagen and scored two points as Denmark beat Bulgaria 3-2 in World Group I, defeating Ilyan Radulov in straight sets on Friday, before going on to win a must-win against Grigor Dimitrov 3-6, 6-3, 7-6 (4).
This is a significant first week. set against the former world No. 3 on the live rubber, the second day of a tie with the nation’s promotion on the line. Dimitrov was playing his first Davis Cup match since 2015 and was unable to close out the third set.
Denmark’s reward is a place in next year’s qualifying round 1, while Rooney’s is the knowledge that his Achilles has played two games in two days. Brazil joined them in that draw and their victory came with history.
6. Spain continues to produce players that no one expected
Spain thrashed Chile 3-0 and the headliner was a debutant. First-seeded Rafael Jodar defeated Christian Garin 6-0, 6-2 in his first appearance in national colors. Daniel Merida also featured and the tie ended with the pair of Pedro Martinez and Jaume Munar.
The point isn’t the score, it’s the depth. Imagine this team with both Alcaraz and Jodar.
7. France aren’t just out, they’re becoming strangers to this round
Canada defeated France 3-1 in Quebec City, with Felix Auger-Aliassime the driving force in front of 11,697 at the Center Videotron. The world No. 5 recovered from a set down to beat Artur Rinderknecht 4-6, 7-5, 6-4 to spare Canada a crucial singles match. Benjamin Bonzi and Pierre-Hugues Herber kept France alive with a 7-6 (4), 6-3 doubles win over Auger-Aliassime and debutant Duncan Chan.
One number illustrates the decline of the French better than any analysis. France has been among the world’s top eight teams once in seven appearances at the reformed Davis Cup since 2019.
Rinderknecht, battered and disappointed after Friday’s defeat to Liam Draxle, dropped a cryptic line in his press conference (“I didn’t expect that, that’s not what I heard or understood”) before unleashing it on Saturday, praising the staff.
8. “Monaco” is back to the level it last reached… in 1929
Monaco beat Finland 3-1 away from home in Espoo on September 18-19 and the two-kilometre-square power now has a place in the 2027 Davis Cup qualifiers, their highest level and first at that stage since 1929.
The recipe hasn’t changed since they beat Alexander Bublik’s Kazakhstan 3-1 in Astana earlier this year; Valentin Vacherot wins two singles and doubles the rest. Hugo Nice and Romain Arnéudo duly defeated Hari Heliovara and Niklas Salminen. “We really have no margin for error,” Nees said. “We have to win those three points, Val’s two singles and doubles.”
Monaco currently has only one player ranked on the ATP computer, which is why Lucas Katarina, the former No. 341 who retired more than two years ago, came out of retirement on Friday to become No. 2.
9. Joao Fonseca cried on the court and Stan Wawrinka said goodbye to the Davis Cup.
Brazil beat Switzerland 3-1 at the Farmasi Arena in Rio de Janeiro, and the draw produced the most emotional scene of the week. Fonseca, 20, missed a month with a right shoulder injury and then a left abdominal injury in Cincinnati that forced him out of the US Open. In full form, he came from a set down to beat Dominic Strier 4-6, 6-3, 6-2, before falling to his knees and crying into the towel.
Gustavo Heide added a second point to beat Stan Wawrinka in what was the Swiss veteran’s last appearance before Davis Cup. Orlando Luz and Rafael Matos then sealed the doubles tie against Jakub Pohl and Stricker on Saturday afternoon.
Brazil advance to next year’s qualifiers, one round from the 2027 Finals. Switzerland stay where they are and their most decorated player leaves the competition for good.