FP – With the Davis Cup on the line, Radek Stepanek delivered again.
Stepanek gave the Czech Republic their second straight Davis Cup title on Sunday, sweeping past Dusan Lajovic in straight sets in the fifth and decisive match to secure a 3-2 win over Serbia in the final.
That made Stepanek the first player in Cup history to decide two consecutive finals in the fifth match, having done the same against Spain’s Nicolas Almagro last year.
“This is an amazing moment,” said Stepanek, who beat the 117th-ranked Lajovic 6-3 6-1 6-1 after Novak Djokovic had levelled the series for Serbia at 2-2 earlier on Sunday.
The Czech veteran converted his first match point with a smash to send about 1000 heavily outnumbered visiting fans at Belgrade Arena into wild celebrations as they blew trumpets and beat their drums.
Stepanek spread his hands on the court as Tomas Berdych and other Czech teammates jumped on him.
“It’s difficult to find right words for emotions I am going through now,” Stepanek said. “It was a completely different experience than last year. I was very focused, concentrated. I knew what to do on court. We made history for our country today.”
Stepanek said he was surprised Serbia did not select Novak Djokovic for the crucial doubles.
“It’s as if they left a Ferrari in a garage. And it cost me 10 euros – I bet he’d play,” said Stepanek.
World No.2 Djokovic won both his singles rubbers in straight sets over the weekend against Stepanek and Tomas Berdych.
But he sat out the key doubles on Saturday when Berdych and Stepanek comfortably saw off Ilija Bozoljac and Nenad Zimonjic.
The decision proved crucial as the Czechs won the final 3-2 after Serbia’s rookie singles player Lajovic was defeated in both his outings.
Last year’s victory was the first for the Czechs as an independent nation. Serbia won their only crown in 2010, beating France in Belgrade.