By Richard Pagliaro | Thursday, November 20, 2025
Photo credit: Davis Cup Facebook
Playing without its top guns, Spain showed fire and desire to return to the Davis Cup semifinals.
Spain’s Jaume Munar stopped Jiri Lehecka 6-3, 6-4 to level today’s Davis Cup quarterfinal with Czechia.
Marcel Granollers and Pedro Martinez were heroic closers edging Tomas Machac and Jakub Mensik 7-6(8), 7-6(8) lifting Spain to a thrilling 2-1 triumph over Czechia in Bologna.
Granollers and Martinez saved three set points in the first-set tiebreaker then denied two more set points in the second set tiebreaker in a spirited comeback sending Spain into its first Davis Cup semifinal since 2019.
A quality doubles decider ended on a Mensik double fault after two hours, three minutes of pulsating play.
Spain will play the winner of today’s quarterfinal between Argentina and Germany in Saturday’s semifinals. The winner of that Saturday semifinal will play either two-time defending-champion Italy or Belgium in the Davis Cup final on Sunday.
Opening this quarterfinal clash with confidence, an imposing Mensik threw down 20 aces defeating veteran Pablo Carreno Busta 7-5, 6-4.
Miami Open champion Mensik saved two break points holding for 4-3. Mensik navigated a tough deuce hold edging ahead 6-5 then converted his third set point breaking Carreno Busta for a one-set lead.
Serving at 4-5 in the second set, Carreno Busta felt the pressure as Mensik delivered some deep strikes breaking to close a 99-minute win and stake Czechia to a 1-0 lead.
“The energy and the atmosphere of the crowd and of the Davis Cup gave me really good energy,” Mensik said. “Even in the first set that he broke me up, like the first one, I knew that I had the opportunities on the return. My serve was pretty strong throughout the whole game, throughout the whole match.
“I’m just glad that I kept the energy and the focus throughout the whole match. Yeah, I broke him back in the first one. It was a crucial part for me because, of course, first set is always important. I’m just glad that I kept it up.”
The subplot of this tie was Spain playing without its top two-ranked players.
World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz withdrew on Monday after a scan showed edema in the right leg injury he suffered losing the ATP Finals title match in Turin to Jannik Sinner on Sunday.
Spanish No. 2 Alejandro Davidovich Fokina was bypassed by Captain David Ferrer, who was reportedly upset Davidovich Fokina was a late withdrawal from an earlier tie.
That meant pressure shifted directly on Jaume Munar’s shoulders.
World No. 36 Munar delivered, defeating 17th-ranked Jiri Lehecka 6-3, 6-4.
The 28-year-old Munar saved both break points he faced earning his first career Davis Cup singles victory at the most important time.
“I was pretty confident on my tennis,” Munar said. “Doesn’t matter who I have in front. That’s the first and
most important thing. Because I’ve been playing really good in indoors this year, I had a great confident on myself. That’s the main [factor].
“Then two matches lost against Jiri, but feeling like I could do something else that I didn’t do last couple of times. Not much than being there point by point and trying to put my strategy there and serving great as I did today. That was the main thing.”
Lehecka double faulted away the break and a 4-2 first-set lead to the Spaniard. A streaking Munar reeled off eight of the next nine points played on his serve to build a one-set lead.
Munar broke at 30 to start the second set and backed up the break for a 2-0 second-set lead.
Battling back from 15-40 down in the sixth game, Munar stood tall saving both break points to hold for 4-2.
As he did in the first set, Munar won eight of his last nine service points closing a one hour, 22-minute win to level the tie and set up the dramatic and decisive doubles duel.
Czechia Captain Tomas Berdych was on his feet—along with thousands of fans in Super Tennis Arena—as the crucial first-set doubles tiebreaker began.
Playing the deuce court, Machac zipped a forehand return winner down the line—his second down the line return winner of the breaker—as Czechia edged ahead 5-2.
That superb strike sparked a run of four consecutive mini breaks. When Machac hit a short forehand winner, Czechia held two set points at 6-4.
On a dizzying all court point, the scrambling Spaniards kept the ball alive and Mensik netted a short volley on the first set point. Granollers knocked off a high volley to save set point No. 2 before Mensik carved a volley winner giving Czechia a third set point at 7-6.
The Spaniards targeted the Mensik forehand and reaped reward as he netted a forehand on the third set point. Granollers, a force at net, hit a high volley winner giving Spain its first set point only to narrowly miss a forehand return as the breaker was deadlocked at 8-all.
Delivering the shot of the tiebreaker, Martinez ripped an inside-out backhand return winner off a tough Mensik serve to give Spain set point No. 2 at 9-8.
Granollers closed net and shouted “No!” to his partner as Mensik sailed a forehand long as the Spanish duo fought off three set points in all to seize the one-hour opening set.
Martinez held for 4-3 on a Granollers decisive volley then Spain earned two break points in the eighth game.
On the second break point, Machac slammed an ace wide and followed with an ace down the T taming trouble to level the second set, 4-all, for Czechia.
Deadlocked at 5-all, Czechia gained break point on Martinez’s serve. Machac, who had been deadly returning down the line all day, missed a forehand return down the line wide as Martinez held for 6-5.
In the second-set tiebreaker, a Martinez forehand volley put Spain up 4-2, but Czechia roared back winning four of the next five points and gaining set point on a Mensik ace down the T.
Granollers hit a forehand volley to save set point then Spain seized match point at 7-6. Machac blistered a big serve wide to draw Czechia level then hit another biting serve and backed it up with a smash giving Czechia a second set point.
Rising to the occasion again, Granollers whipped the the wide serve to save set point.
On Spain’s second match point, Mensiki, whose serve was so massive in the opening singles match, tightened up double-faulting beyond the service line and Spain was through to its first semifinal since 2019.
