Davis Cup: "The Hardest Part Begins," Warns Mathieu Ahead of Second Day of Competition Between Croatia and France
France started their Davis Cup tie in style, winning the first two matches against Croatia thanks to Corentin Moutet and Arthur Rinderknech. With these results, Les Bleus are just one point away from reaching the Final 8 in Bologna, which would be a first since 2019.
France won the first two matches of the Davis Cup tie in Croatia. Thanks to Corentin Moutet and Arthur Rinderknech, who managed to defeat Dino Prizmic and Marin Cilic in Osijek, Les Bleus are just one win away from joining Germany and Italy, the first two nations to qualify for the Final 8 in Bologna in two months.
However, the job must be finished this Sunday at 1 p.m., when Benjamin Bonzi and Pierre-Hugues Herbert will have to overcome the pair Mate Pavic/Nikola Mektic in doubles. Meanwhile, captain Paul-Henri Mathieu reacted to this first day of competition on the Croatian clay.
"These were two matches with very different scenarios. Corentin (Moutet) was the favorite, but it was his first Davis Cup match. He handled it well. He was good in his emotional management. It was top. And Arthur (Rinderknech) played a very solid match from start to finish.
He took Cilic by the throat right from the start. You can feel he's in a good dynamic, not overthinking things. It was a very good first day. Now, there's one point left to get. The hardest one.
Corentin's goal was to join this French team. He was really very proud to have been selected, to wear this jersey. He's simply happy to be on the team. We felt a lot of openness from him. He's an intelligent person, who knows how to take in information that can help him on the court. He integrated very well into the group.
The hardest part begins. I have in mind that the goal is to qualify for this final phase (in Bologna from November 18 to 23). We've been circling around it for a long time. We've taken a small first step. There's one last big step to take on Saturday," the captain assured the FFT media.
