The Korean men’s tennis team, preparing for the Asian Games to open on the 23rd, was eliminated after losing all three matches to Serbia and the Czech Republic, and was eliminated in the group stage of the Davis Cup Finals, a national competition. The Davis Cup Finals, known as the ‘Tennis World Cup’, will feature 16 countries that have advanced through the regional preliminaries, and they will be divided into four groups (groups A-D) and play in the group stage.
Korea (ranked 15th in the world) lost 1 to 2 to Spain (ranked 2nd) in the third match of Group C of the 2023 Davis Cup Finals group stage held in Valencia, Spain on the 17th (local time). Korea, which had previously lost 0-3 to Serbia (8th) and the Czech Republic (13th), recorded three losses and ended the tournament in last place in its group. Still, they fought hard and won one game in the final match.
In Korea, in the first singles, Hong Seong-chan (26, Sejong City Hall, 195th) lost to Bernabe Zapata Mirayes (26, 74th) with a set score of 0 to 2 (4-6 5-7), and in the second singles, Kwon Soon-woo (26, 74th) Dangjin City Hall (112th place) bowed to Alejandro Davidovic Fokina (24th, 25th place) 0-2 (4-6 4-6).Still, in Korea, in the doubles, the group of Nam Ji-seong (30, Sejong City Hall, 126th in doubles) and Song Min-gyu (33, KDB Industrial Bank, 185th in doubles) is 2 in the group of Albert Ramos Vinolas (35) and Marcel Granollers (37). 1(6-7<2-7> 7-6<8-6> 10-8) They came from behind and took their first win.
In the finals preliminaries against Belgium held at the indoor court at Olympic Park in Songpa-gu, Seoul last February, Korea was dragged down with 0 wins and 2 losses, but successfully made a dramatic turnaround by coming먹튀검증 down to 3 wins. Based on this, Korea will advance to the finals for two consecutive years for the fifth time and for the first time in history, following 1981, 1987, 2007, and 2022. It was the only Asian country to achieve the feat of reaching the finals this year.
However, they are struggling on the finals stage. Last year, Korea was placed in a group with Canada, Serbia, and Spain, but failed to advance to the quarterfinals due to losing all three matches.
In addition to the Czech Republic and Serbia in Group C, this year’s Davis Cup quarterfinalists are Canada and Italy in Group A, England and Australia in Group B, and the Netherlands and Finland in Group D.
After completing the Davis Cup schedule, the national team now looks to the Asian Games in Hangzhou, China (opening on the 23rd). Coach Kim Young-jun said, “If you had watched every game and not just the three losses, I think the team did their best. “I had a chance to win, but I feel regretful,” he said. “The first round of singles (Hangzhou Asian Games) starts on the 24th. He said, “Recovering players’ fatigue and regaining their physical condition is an urgent priority.” National team ‘ace’ Kwon Soon-woo said, “The Asian Games are the most stressful tournament, but fortunately, I played three games in the Davis Cup before that.” He added, “I’m trying not to feel too much pressure. Because I was under pressure this time, I couldn’t show a good performance. “I want to finish the Asian Games with peace of mind,” he said.
The national team will return home on the 19th and immediately leave for Hangzhou on the 20th.
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