James Ward put Great Britain in charge of their Davis Cup clash against the United States thanks to a shock five-set win over Sam Querrey.
World number four Andy Murray gave Britain the advantage when he won in straight sets against Donald Young but Ward, ranked 175th in the world, stole the limelight when he beat Querrey to put Britain 2-0 up in the best-of-five contest.
Murray showed he is continuing his recovery from injury well when he raced to a 6-1 6-2 6-3 victory at the Petco Park in San Diego. Young, who was a late replacement for the injured John Isner, had no answer to Murray’s quality.
The Scot admitted after his win that the court was pretty slippery, but Ward adapted well to the surface to shock Querrey, ranked 49th in the world.
The gruelling match went on for more than three hours but he eventually wrapped up the game with a 1-6 7-6 (7/3) 3-6 6-4 6-1 victory.
Speaking after his win, Ward said: “I love playing Davis Cup, I love playing for my country and that shows in my performances.
“It’s such a great win. I played well, dug in and gave myself a chance and in the end it worked.”
The win gives Britain a great chance to beat the US in the Davis Cup for the first time since 1935.
Link Dafabet