There’s only a few better No 1s in the world right now than the guy coming out here so I wanted to set it up for him out there.”Īfter spending most of his career far out of the spotlight, this tournament marks an interesting step for Norrie as he adjusts to his new status within the sport. It was great to play for my country, come out and get a point on the board. “I’ve thought about the match all week and it’s difficult to come out and get your game on the court and try to stay calm. “It’s not easy to come out playing first,” Evans said.
However, Evans struck his more potent forehand well and his backhand slice robbed Mannarino of the pace he loves to feed off.ĭespite ample pressure, Evans sealed the opening set at his second attempt and then took an essential break at 4-4 in the second set before closing out the win. While France have historically boasted one of the deepest Davis Cup teams, reaching back-to-back Davis Cup finals in the previous format as recently as in 20, they arrived in Austria with a depleted group headed by Rinderknech, the fast-improving world No 58 and French No 4.Īlthough Mannarino has endured a tough season, he was a nuisance to Evans early on with his spotless hand-eye coordination and sweet, compact backhand. In the doubles, Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski lost 6-1, 6-4 to Nicolas Mahut and Rinderknech. Cameron Norrie, the British No 1, followed shortly after, securing the win by saving two set points in a breathless, extended tiebreak before edging past Arthur Rinderknech 6-2, 7-6 (8). In the opening rubber between the two second-ranked players, Dan Evans overcame some tough resistance from Adrian Mannarino, the world No 71, to win 7-5, 6-4.
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