by A win by Billy Harris on his debut sealed Great Britain’s victory in their Davis Cup opening match against Finland in Manchester.
Harris held his nerve in a close second set against Otto Virtanen and secured a 6-4, 7-6 (4) victory, giving the hosts an unassailable 2-0 lead in the match at the AO Arena.
That win, along with Dan Evans’ 7-6 (3) 6-2 victory over the lower-ranked Eero Vasa, ensured the Brits made no mistakes in their bid to secure their place in the quarter-finals in Malaga in November.
Harris’ performance more than justified captain Leon Smith’s decision to give US Open semi-finalist Jack Draper extra rest ahead of much more difficult matches against Argentina and Canada later this week, where he will need to finish in the top two spots in the group.
At 29, Isle of Man-born Harris is a true late bloomer, having finally reached the top ranks of the sport in the last 12 months after spending years touring Europe in a converted van.
The first match was tricky against 23-year-old Virtanen, who is ranked 110th, just nine places lower than Harris, and played a key role in Finland’s surprise semifinal run last year.
However, they had to do without the injured number one Emil Ruusuvuori and Virtanen’s attempts to force a deciding set narrowly failed.
Harris had his unpredictable opponent completely under control until the score was 4-2 in the second set, but then missed several chances for a double break and was immediately thrown back again.
But he withstood the pressure, forced a tiebreak and showed the composure of a seasoned fighter to take the win.
“I think debuting for Great Britain is probably the best I’ve experienced so far,” Harris said. “It was always going to be tough to be number one, without Jack and Cam (Norrie) and other people. But I think I went out there and played a good game.”
“There are definitely nerves involved, you’re not just playing for yourself, but for the team and the country. But once it started, I felt good out there. A very proud moment and I’m glad I performed well.”
Evans’ clash with Vasa was a milestone for the British veteran, who surpassed Andy Murray in his 26th match at the competition to move joint second in the British rankings with Mike Sangster, second only to Bobby Wilson.
In his previous 37 encounters he would not have been the big favorite, but Vasa played in the close first set well above his position as world number 703.
“I knew his ranking, which probably made it a little more difficult. The pressure to win the match was a lot more for me,” said Evans, who has slipped to 178th in the world rankings after a difficult 12 months.
“As Billy was a debutant, I really wanted to go 1-0 up to help him a bit more. I weathered the storm well and it was pretty comfortable in the end.”
The 34-year-old made his Davis Cup debut in 2009 and cited victories over Slovakia and Russia a decade ago as highlights when Great Britain were stuck at the back of the competition.
“It’s a pretty good thing,” he said of his victory over Murray. “I enjoyed every match. It was especially great when we beat Slovakia and of course the game against Coventry (against Russia).”
“The early days were pretty good when we weren’t that good. We had some big wins and then so many more came after that. Last year was really good, of course.
“Every week is great. It’s incredible to be part of the team. I don’t know how many more chances I’ll get, so I’m going to keep enjoying it.”
