Australia Davis Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt said he was “very proud” after his team’s 2024 campaign ended in the semi-finals against Italy.
Malaga, Spain, November 24, 2024 | lis de degde
Australia missed out on their first Davis Cup title since 2003, losing to Italy in the semifinals.
The Australian team has reached the semifinals for the third consecutive year, but underperformed in both singles rubbers against the defending champions in a rematch of last year’s final.
Although understandably disappointed, Australia captain Lleyton Hewitt is filled with pride about his team’s 2024 journey.
“Yes. It’s really hard for all the boys. They put in a lot of effort to give us the opportunity to be here and to be close again,” Hewitt said.
“But yeah, (I’m) very proud again of those guys and the effort they brought and put in for the whole team.”
The tie began with a late showdown between Thanasi Kokkinakis and Wimbledon 2021 finalist Matteo Berrettini.
The two dominant servers fought all the way to a tiebreak in the opening set, with Kokkinakis saving three set points and handling the pressure to take the opener.
But the Italian’s classy serve and powerful forehand barely got him past the 6-7(6) 6-3 7-5 line.
“He served unbelievably. 89% in the third set (on first serve). (He) didn’t give me much of a chance to look inside,” Kokkinakis said.
“Yeah, I’m plain. “You always feel like you let the team down a little bit, but at the same time I did my best.”
I’m proud of this team 💚💛
3 times in a row @Davis Cup semifinal. Today is not our day.
Bravo, Italy 👏 pic.twitter.com/3u2WTGVtPI
— TennisAustralia (@TennisAustralia) November 23, 2024
Alex de Minaur had the huge task of playing world number one Jannik Sinner, who had just won the ATP Finals in Turin. Aside from the loss to Carlos Alcaraz, the Italian has only lost one game on hard courts this year when he was sick in Montreal.
De Minaur had moments to shine with his signature speed and variety of groundstrokes around the court, allowing him to break Sinner’s serve midway through the opening set.
But the crowd, packed with Italian fans, spurred a 6-3 6-4 win that ended Australia’s Davis Cup campaign.
“His ball speed and consistency makes it feel like he never loses focus throughout the game,” De Minaur said.
“So if you want to go out and beat him, you have to go out and play your best tennis. “Especially in such big areas, we need to go one step further.”
Australia will play home and away in the week commencing January 27 with a chance of qualifying for the next round in September.
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