Davis Cup finals: Struff, Altmaier win as Germany beat Canada to storm into semis

Germany`s Jan-Lennard Struff returns a shot to Canada`s Denis Shapovalov in the quarter-final singles match between Germany and Canada during the Davis Cup Finals at the Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena arena in Malaga, southern Spain. Pic/AFP

Jan-Lennard Struff and Daniel Altmaier won their respective matches as Germany defeated Canada 2-0 to storm into the semifinals for the Davis Cup finals here on Wednesday. Germany came through the quarterfinals for the first time since 2019 getting the better of Canada with ease.

Altmaier overcame a nervous start to get past Gabriel Diallo 7-6(5) 6-4 in straight sets before Struff somehow found a way to close out a thrilling encounter against Denis Shapovalov 4-6 7-5 7-6(5).

"Today I think both players deserved to win," Struff said. "But I'm happy to get it over the line at the end. Denis was playing amazingly, coming out firing, he was serving so well the whole match. It was tough to return. Even in the tiebreak, he hit some winners. It was very close," said Struff after the match.

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The victory set up a semifinal encounter between Germany and the Netherlands after the Dutch knocked out Spain and ended Rafael Nadal's tennis career on Tuesday night.

Struff was excited to be playing against old sporting foes. "It will be amazing," he said. "It's a big step for us to go from the quarters to the semis. We want to win and go to the finals now."

"Netherlands played an amazing tie. We expect tough opposition. We know the Germans and the Dutch have a little rivalry and the Dutch guys have amazing fans so I'm looking forward to it," added the German star.

Shapovalov will rue missed opportunities against an opponent who also defeated him in a third-set tiebreak in this competition in 2022. The Canadian was unstoppable at times, hitting 27 aces and 24 winners. But he also gave up 13 free points with double faults, including a gift to hand the match to his opponent.

Earlier, in the opening match, both players looked apprehensive during the first set. Altmaier let a 5-0 lead in the tiebreak slip before getting over the line 7-5. A better second set ensued and it was only when the German battled back from 15-40 down to break the Canadian in the tenth game that the match was won.

Altmaier also revealed that the German team went to the stadium last night to experience Rafael Nadal's last tennis match. "We watched the whole first set," he said. "We all had tears when we saw the images. I have been watching him since we were very young boys, so it's just something super touching, super memorable."

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