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Alex de Minaur of Australia beat Jiri Lehecka of the Czech Republic 4-6, 7-6(2), 7-5 in the quarterfinal of the Davis Cup in Malaga on Wednesday, Nov. 22. Australia had lost the first rubber, but de Minaur’s hard-earned win leveled the score at 1-1. The match lasted for around two and a half hours.
The Aussies then won the following doubles match, 6-4, 7-5, to win the tie and qualify for the semifinal. On that note, let us take a look at two things that stood out in the match:
#1. Jiri Lehecka dominated the first set with his powerful forehand:
Jiri Lehecka’s plan in the first set was primarily to engage Alex de Minaur in crosscourt forehand exchanges and then play his down-the-line forehand with a lot of power to the open court. De Minaur often took the pace off the ball with his backhand slices, but Lehecka was quick to pounce on any short ball provided to him.
The Czech got an early break in the first set to take a 4-3 lead and then held his serve to extend it. He then went on to win the set without much trouble to draw the first blood and thus take a significant lead in the match.
#2. De Minaur started playing his shots deep, as Jiri Lehecka’s net-rushing often backfired:
Jiri Lehecka continued his dominant run in the initial parts of the second set as well, earning another break of serve to take the lead. The 22-year-old Czech was, in fact, serving for the match at 5-4, but De Minaur managed to break back and stay in the match.
The set then went into a tie-break which saw the Australian race to a 2-0 lead before winning it comfortably. The deciding set was also a tightly contested one, but the 24-year-old Australian did just about enough to get the crucial break and eventually win the match.
The Australian started playing his shots deep from the second set onwards, which meant that his opponent was not able to have too many short balls to dispatch for winners. As a result, Lehecka started going around his backhand frequently to take the ball with his forehand. However, he still found it difficult to hit through the Australian in medium-fast conditions.
The young Czech also charged the net often, but that tactic backfired at times, as De Minaur succeeded in playing a few well-placed lobs to catch him off guard. In the end, it was a deserving win for the current World No. 12.
