- Australia have reached another Davis Cup final
- Will face either a Novak Djokovic led Serbia or Italy
- Alex de Minaur & Alexei Popyrin delivered against Finland
Lleyton Hewitt has declared his close-knit tennis band of brothers will give it ‘a hell of a shake’ to bring back the Davis Cup to Australia after they roared into another final in Malaga.
Following their 2-0 victory over Finland in Friday’s semi-final, executed superbly without a dropped set in singles wins for Alexei Popyrin and Alex de Minaur, team captain Hewitt said he couldn’t be prouder of their achievement in making back-to-back finals.
And even though they’ll be facing either a Serbian side led by world No.1 Novak Djokovic or an Italian team inspired by young superstar Jannik Sinner in Sunday’s [Monday AEDT] final, the inspirational de Minaur was adamant: ‘No-one really wants to play us.’
He delivered once more for Australia, taking an 11th victory in his last 13 Cup singles matches, sealing his win by defeating Emil Ruusuvuori 6-4 6-3.
It had followed a superb win from teammate Popyrin, who defied jangling nerves to earn a 7-6 (7-5) 6-2 victory over Otto Virtanen.
Lleyton Hewitt has declared his close-knit tennis band of brothers will give it ‘a hell of a shake’ after they roared into another Davis Cup final (pictured left, with Alex de Minaur)
Alexei Popyrin showed nerves of steel to beat Finland’s Otto Virtanen in straight sets
It meant the Aussies’ crack doubles team of Max Purcell and Matt Ebden weren’t even required as Hewitt’s crew marched into the final brimming with confidence.
Naturally, it will be a tall order on the fast-paced hard court at the Palacio de deportes Martin Carpena, but Hewitt has de Minaur, a man who just keeps growing in stature in the gold-and-green, to call on.
Australia have won the Davis Cup 28 times, but will be seeking a first win in the World Cup of men’s tennis in 20 years.
‘We are a very solid squad, a lot of depth in every single position, and if we can get ourselves to a deciding doubles, we’ve got an unbelievable pairing as well,’ said de Minaur.
‘So we singles guys have just got do our best to try and get a win and let the doubles guys do the job.
‘Hopefully we can go one better this year,’ he added, recalling the 2-0 defeat by Canada in 2022.
De Minaur was the hero on Wednesday, producing an extraordinary comeback win over Jiri Lehecka with Australia on the verge of defeat in their quarter-final against the Czech Republic.
Alex de Minaur also impressed in his comfortable win against Emil Ruusuvuori at the Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena in Malaga, Spain
But he was happy to pass the laurels to Popyrin, a late squad replacement who was asked to take on the troublesome ‘second singles’ role by Hewitt.
‘Alexei hasn’t played for Australia in a very long time [two years], had a massive match today against a very high quality opponent and dug super deep,’ said de Minaur.
Popyrin managed to deliver a rock solid game, making only 11 unforced errors to his erratic opponent’s 25, to prevail in just under an hour-and-a-half.
‘It was probably the biggest win of my career,’ he admitted. ‘To win a match that means so much to us, it’s an honour and something I’ll never forget.
‘Nothing compares to this.’