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Alex de Minaur has returned to form to seal Australia’s Davis Cup progression, with the hosts beating Poland 3-1 in Brisbane also thanks to some earlier doubles brilliance.
The world No.9 found top gear on Sunday at Pat Rafter Arena, beating Kamil Majchrzak 6-3 6-3 to clinch a 3-1 result that sends Australia into the Cup’s penultimate round next year.
With his backhand and serve firing, de Minaur followed up his 57-minute annihilation of Maks Kasnikowski on Saturday with another therapeutic response to a disappointing second-round US Open exit earlier this month.
Earlier, Max Purcell’s scintillating tiebreak tennis alongside rock-solid Rinky Hijikata swung their doubles match, and the tie, in Australia’s favour.
The pair’s 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 defeat of Jan Zielinski and Karol Drzewiecki followed the win and the loss posted in singles by de Minaur and James Duckworth respectively on Saturday.
Purcell, on the comeback from a controversial 18-month anti-doping ban, turned the match on its head after a tight first set progressed to an inevitable tie break.
He drilled a backhand return to win the opening point on the Polish serve, then produced a pair of aces to shoot the hosts clear 3-0.
An unforced error from Poland was followed by two more Purcell winners, and he then held his nerve on a series of low volleys to eventually clinch the set.
Hijikata then held impressively and, after missing two break-point chances, nailed a forehand return to nab the match’s only service break.
That was all Australia needed, with the composed pair energising the sold-out Pat Rafter Arena to secure a pressure-relieving victory in 77 minutes.
Australia’s win followed a shock loss on the road to Ecuador earlier this year that plunged it into the must-win encounter against Poland.
The Aussies still need to win next year’s qualifying round, against an opponent still to be decided, to progress to the finals in Italy in November, 2027.
AAP
