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John Isner, U.S. take lead vs. Slovakia

Tennis

HOFFMAN ESTATES, Ill. -- John Isner escaped a tight first set and used his thundering serve Friday night to give the U.S. a 1-0 lead over Slovakia in the Davis Cup World Group playoff.

The 6-foot-10 Isner, ranked 16th in the world, hit 29 aces on the hard court at the Sears Centre and beat Norbert Gombos 7-6 (5), 6-4, 6-2.

Gombos, ranked 126th, was a surprise choice as Slovakia's No. 2, but he showed his skills during a group quarterfinal in April when he made his Davis Cup debut and beat Austria's Dominic Thiem.

But this time he had to fight off the powerful serves of Isner and managed only two break point opportunities.

"Going into a match like this, three-out-of-five match, it's not surprising I didn't lose my serve," Isner said. "I've done that before, for sure. Always going to be the biggest part of my game and it's going to be the part of my game that I lean on the most."

Isner trailed in the first-set tiebreaker 4-2 before pulling it out 7-5 when Gombos netted a volley and hit long after a strong serve.

Isner then broke Gombos in the opening game of the second set and his game improved steadily thereafter.

"I was a bit nervous in the beginning. I had to really dig deep to win that first set. But once I got that under my belt, I exhaled and then I started to play better," Isner said. "It's never easy. But that first set was very important."

Serving for the second set at 5-4, Isner double-faulted twice, but then won the next four points with an ace, a volley, an overhead and a service winner.

"I know that he's serving perfect, like from the Eiffel Tower, you know," Gombos said. "I never returned a serve like his because it's quite different from the other players because he is really tall. The ball is bouncing so high."

Isner said he was aware of how well Gombos, who has flat groundstrokes and good speed around the court, can play.

"It's a tough match for someone like me," Isner said. "We're at home. I'm ranked higher than him. I guess on paper I'm expected to win that match. There's a lot of pressure on me. It's not an easy situation."

American Sam Querrey faced Slovakia's No. 1 Martin Klizan in the second singles Friday at the Sears Centre, located about 30 miles northwest of Chicago.

US Open champs Bob and Mike Bryan were to play Saturday's doubles match. Their opponents, who could be changed before match time, were announced as Michal Mertinak and Lukas Lacko.

The U.S., which lost to Great Britain earlier this year, hasn't missed competing in the World Group, the upper tier, since 1988.

Slovakia is trying to pull the upset and make it back to the World Group for the first time since 2006.

France takes 2-0 lead over two-time defending champion Czech Republic

PARIS -- France closed in on its first Davis Cup final since 2010 after Richard Gasquet and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga gave the hosts a 2-0 lead over two-time defending champion Czech Republic in the semifinals Friday.

Opening on Roland Garros center court, Gasquet stormed to a 6-3, 6-2, 6-3 win over Tomas Berdych, then France's No. 1 player, Tsonga, proved too strong for Lukas Rosol, dispatching him 6-2, 6-2, 6-3 in 91 minutes.

Serving impeccably and limiting his mistakes to 12 unforced errors on the red clay, Gasquet justified his selection over Gael Monfils.

"This is one of my best wins ever," said Gasquet, who kneeled on the court after Berdych double-faulted on match point. "The atmosphere was great, this is the Davis Cup, at Roland Garros, and I beat a top player."

Spurred on by the vocal French fans on a sunny morning, Gasquet quickly found a good rhythm and lost only five points on his serve in the first set, breaking in the fourth game after the sixth-ranked Berdych missed three consecutive shots.

Struggling with his forehand and moving slowly on court, Berdych had 38 unforced errors. The former Wimbledon runner-up was never a threat and admitted he played his worst Davis Cup match.

"My body is not ready for this. I needed more time to be fit. I need more time to be better prepared," said Berdych, who reached the US Open quarterfinals last week. "This is the toughest conditions for me, coming from fast hard courts to the clay. I definitely need more time, but it was a good choice for France. I need to move on and get over it."

Gasquet, who has been hampered by injuries this season, won the first set with a backhand down the line, then jumped to 3-0 in the second as Berdych continued to hit erratic shots. The hard-hitting Czech managed to break Gasquet in the next game but his recovery was short-lived.

The French No. 2 broke again early in the third set, and Berdych gifted the match with his second double fault.

Tsonga made light work of Rosol and thanked his teammate for putting him in an ideal position with his impressive win over Berdych.

"The key was the first match. After that, I was playing freely," Tsonga said. "Richard's victory hammered the Czechs."

Following Monfils' good run at the US Open, Gasquet was not expected to play in the singles. But Monfils told France captain Arnaud Clement he was still jet-lagged and struggling to adapt to clay after losing in the quarterfinals at Flushing Meadows.

"I quickly found out this week that I was going to play the opening game because Gael was tired," the 21st-ranked Gasquet said. "And I could not have dreamed of a better start."

With their 12-tie winning streak at risk, the Czechs should win Saturday's doubles to keep alive the chance of reaching a third straight final. The doubles pits French duo Julien Benneteau and Monfils against Radek Stepanek and Jiri Vesely, but both captains are expected to amend their lineups, with Berdych likely to play with Stepanek.

"Although we are trailing 2-0, the tie is not over, hopefully Tomas will recover," Czech Republic captain Jaroslav Navratil said.

Berdych and Stepanek boast a 15-1 winning record together in Davis Cup.

Clement hinted that both Tsonga and Gasquet were possible candidates for the doubles rubber match.

"They showed they are ready to play over the three days," he said.

If France wins this weekend, it will play at Italy or host Switzerland in the final.

Federer helps Swiss go up 2-0

GENEVA -- Stan Wawrinka followed Roger Federer's straight-sets win with a quick victory Friday, giving Switzerland a 2-0 lead over Italy in the Davis Cup semifinals.

Wawrinka, the Australian Open champion, beat Italian No. 1 Fabio Fognini 6-2, 6-3, 6-2 in just 90 minutes at the Palexpo indoor arena.

Earlier, Federer beat 76th-ranked Simone Bolelli 7-6 (5), 6-4, 6-4 without dropping serve.

Federer and Wawrinka have a chance Saturday to clinch a 3-0 series victory and send Switzerland to its first Davis Cup final in 22 years. The Swiss have never won the title.

The 2008 Olympic doubles gold medalists are scheduled to face Italian pair Andreas Seppi and Paolo Lorenzi.

Bellucci win levels Brazil's series with Spain 

SAO PAULO -- Thomaz Bellucci rallied from two sets down and saved a match point in a 3-6, 6-7 (6), 6-4, 7-5, 6-3 victory over Pablo Andujar on Friday that helped Brazil level the Davis Cup World Group playoff against Spain at 1-1.

Roberto Bautista Agut, Spain's top player for the clay-court series in Brazil, beat the 201st-ranked Rogerio Dutra Silva 6-0, 6-1, 6-3 in the first match.

Bellucci, Brazil's No. 1 player, saved a match point in the fourth set, then broke the 44th-ranked Andujar three times in the decisive set to close out the match in 4 hours and 2 minutes.

"It was a very difficult match emotionally," Bellucci said. "I was nervous in the beginning but was able to overcome my nerves and played well to get the win. We are still alive, we have to keep fighting."

The series will continue on Saturday when Brazil's doubles specialists Marcelo Melo and Bruno Soares face Marc Lopez and David Marrero. The reverse singles matches are scheduled for Sunday.

Spain is without its best two players, Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer. Tommy Robredo, ranked No. 22, also isn't playing in Brazil. The five-time Davis Cup champions are trying to avoid dropping out of the World Group for the first time since 1996. Spain's latest title came in 2011.

"Spain has very good players and even without Rafa and David we are a good team," Bautista Agut said. "Those of us who are here are prepared to help Spain advance."

There was controversy after the 83rd-ranked Bellucci was denied a break following Andujar's double fault at 2-2 in the fourth set. The chair umpire asked the point to be replayed because the crowd allegedly interfered by making noise when the Spaniard was serving. After loud jeers against the umpire and Andujar, Brazil captain Joao Zwetsch had to pick up a microphone and talk to the crowd, asking fans to keep quiet during points.

The 15th-ranked Bautista Agut dominated from the start in the first match, beating Silva in 1 hour, 31 minutes at the Ibirapuera indoor arena. The Spaniard won 11 straight games before his opponent finally held his serve late in the second set.

Silva was a surprise choice by Zwetsch, who left the higher-ranked Joao Souza off the team. The Brazilian only challenged Bautista Agut in the third set, getting two service breaks before failing to hold his own serve in the final game.

It was his first match against Bautista Agut, who lost to Roger Federer in the fourth round of the US Open.

The two nations last played in 1999 in Spain, when three-time French Open champion Gustavo Kuerten led Brazil to victory. In six other meetings, the Spaniards won five.

Depleted Serbia leads India, 2-0

BANGALORE, India -- Dusan Lajovic and Filip Krajinovic ensured a depleted Serbia led India 2-0 after the opening singles in their Davis Cup playoff Friday.

The 61st-ranked Lajovic, who reached the fourth round of the French Open, disposed of 153rd-ranked Yuki Bhambri 6-3, 6-2, 7-5 in just more than two hours.

The lead was increased by 108th-ranked Krajinovic with a 6-1, 4-6, 6-3, 6-2 win over 144th-ranked Somdev Devvarman.

Serbia, last year's runner-up, took the comfortable lead on hard court despite the absence of world No. 1 Novak Djokovic, who was tired, and Janko Tipsarevic, who was injured.

The Indian pair of Leander Paes and Rohan Bopanna will have to defeat Nenad Zimonjic and Ilija Bozoljac in the doubles Saturday to keep the rubber alive.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

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