SPORTS

Nestor and Pospisil grind out doubles win to take lead in Davis Cup tie

Jim Morris The Canadian Press
Published Saturday, March 7, 2015 10:30PM EST

Canada's Daniel Nestor, back, of Toronto, Ont., follows through on a serve while playing with Vasek Pospisil against Japan's Go Soeda and Yasutaka Uchiyama during the fourth set of a Davis Cup tennis world group first round doubles match in Vancouver, B.C., on Saturday March 7, 2015. (Darryl Dyck / THE CANADIAN PRESS)

Text:

VANCOUVER -- The doubles team of Daniel Nestor and Vasek Pospisil has moved Canada one step closer to qualifying for the Davis Cup quarter-finals.

Nestor, of Toronto, and Vancouver's Pospisil needed five sets to defeat Japan's Go Soeda and Yasutaka Uchiyama 7-5, 2-6, 6-3, 3-6, 6-3 Saturday to give Canada a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five tie.

Canada needs to win just one of the two singles matches Sunday to advance to the world group quarter-finals for just the second time.

The fifth and deciding set was a nail biter.

Canada needed a line call on a Japanese shot to win the fifth game and take a 3-2 lead. Uchiyama delivered an ace to win the next game and tie it 3-3. Canada won the next game when Uchiyama returned Nestor's serve into the net. Soeda then double-faulted to put Canada ahead 5-3. Nestor won the match with a forehand shot that neither Japanese player could return.

Nestor, ranked fifth in the world in doubles, and Pospisil, took advantage of 14 unforced errors and broke the Japanese serve twice to win the first set 7-5. Japan lost the opening game of the second set but went on to win 6-2.

Canada rolled through the third set, leaping out to a 4-1 lead then using an ace from Pospisil to win 6-3. Japan refused to quit, taking a 4-1 lead in the fourth and serving up four aces to win 6-3.

The tennis match had the atmosphere of a hockey game with Canadian flags waving and drums pounding. Some fans among the noisy crowd at the Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre on the University of British Columbia campus showed up with painted faces and waved large cardboard cut-outs of their favourite players. Although outnumbered, a contingent of Japanese fans cheered each time Soeda and Uchiyama scored a point.

The doubles victory sets up a singles showdown between Canadian ace Milos Raonic of Thornhill, Ont., and Japan's top-ranked player Kei Nishikori. Raonic is ranked sixth in the world while Nishikori is fourth.

The other singles match has Pospisil scheduled to play Tatsuma Ito.

Canada and Japan split their singles matches on Friday's opening day of competition.

Raonic defeated Ito 6-2, 6-1, 6-2. Japan moved into a tie when Nishikori defeated Pospisil 6-4, 7-6, 6-3.