‘0:2→3:2’ Korean tennis thrilling reversal drama!… Commander “It’s like a dream” Team “A miracle happened”
The Korean men’s tennis team, which was driven to the edge of a cliff, showed their potential and wrote an impressive comeback drama.
Korea, led by coach Park Seung-kyu (KDB Industrial Bank), succeeded in winning three consecutive wins in the 2023 Davis Cup qualifiers held at the Olympic Park indoor tennis court in Seoul on the 5th, overcoming 2 losses the previous day (4th), creating a 3-2 comeback.
With this, Korea succeeded in qualifying for the Davis Cup for the first time in history for two consecutive years. Korea defeated Austria 3-1 in the preliminary finals in March of last year, advancing to the round of 16 at the Davis Cup for the first time in 15 years since 2007. Previously, Korea had reached the round of 16 at the Davis Cup in 1981, 1987, 2007 and 2022.
The Davis Cup, a national competition, is played in a winning way by winning 3 out of 5 matches. Korea was the first to send ‘Ace’ Kwon Soon-woo (61st, Dangjin City Hall) the day before, aiming for a win. Unfortunately, however, they lost 1-2 (6-1 4-6 6-7) to Berris (115th). In the second singles match that followed, Hong Seong-chan (Sejong City Hall, 237th) lost to Gopin 0-2 (4-6 2-6) and was driven to the brink.
However, on the 5th, the Korean national team players cheered up even more with the support of home fans.
First, in doubles, Song Min-gyu (147th in doubles, KDB Industrial Bank) – Nam Ji-seong (152nd in doubles, Sejong City Hall) group Yoran Bligen (53rd) – Sander Gillet (55th) set score 2-0 (7-6) I pressed <7-3> 7-6<7-5>) and took a chance to turn around.
In the third singles match that followed, Kwon Soon-woo won a 2-1 (3-6 6-1 6-3) come-from-behind victory in an ace match against David Gopin (41st). The match is 2-2.
And finally, Hong Seong-chan won a ticket to the Davis Cup Finals by beating Jiju Berris 2-0 (6-3 7-6<7-4>) in the 4th singles match.
Now, Korea will take on a new challenge in the finals group stage in September. In this year’s Davis Cup Finals, Australia and Canada, who competed in last year’s final, as well as wild cards Italy and Spain, have advanced. In addition, Korea, France, USA, Switzerland, England, Serbia, and Sweden joined in this weekend’s final match to advance to the finals. The remaining five places are occupied by the winners of Croatia-Austria, Chile-Kazakhstan 스포츠토토, Netherlands-Slovakia, Finland-Argentina and Czech Republic-Portugal.
According to the Korea Tennis Association, the Korean team held an official press conference after the match. Director Park Seung-gyu said, “I’m so distracted right now. I don’t know how to say it because I’m really distracted.” He couldn’t hide his joy.
Song Min-gyu said, “We had a meeting while receiving treatment until late at night. It’s not over yet, and the hyungs told me to prepare from behind because we’ll do our best to win. Ji-seong and I will do our best to win, and then Sun-woo and Seong-chan can go.” I told Sunwoo and Seongchan that we should prepare well for the last game at home with a bigger mindset.”
“Last year, I had good memories, so I said that if I didn’t give up until the end, I didn’t know what kind of miracle would happen. A miracle happened, and I’m grateful to the manager, coaches, trainers, and players. I think I can be proud of being a very proud tennis team.”
Hong Seong-chan, who won the last 4 singles, replied to the question, ‘Was he confident when entering the game?
Kwon Soon-woo recalled, “On the first day, while talking among the players, we jokingly said, ‘If my brothers win the doubles, I’ll catch David Gopin.’ “I went there for the first time last year, and when I ran, I had a lot of shortcomings, but I also gained the confidence that I can do it. What I felt after today’s game is that I want to aim for advancing to the quarterfinals and semifinals after the round of 16. All the teams are of one mind. I think I will be able to show a better image than last year.”
Nam Ji-seong said, “Without further words, I think our strength is teamwork. We are proud of it because we are more united than any other team. Many people would have thought that we were weaker than Belgium, but we didn’t think so. I thought it would be released. And I am so happy and happy to show you a dramatic drama.”
Regarding leading Korea to the finals twice, Coach Park said, “Rather than the meaning, I felt new when I entered the finals for the first time after taking on the role of coach. It made history. It really feels like a dream to advance twice in a row. I don’t know if this is right. I think it was achieved when the players became one team. It’s something that can’t be replaced with any words. It’s so good.” Since each player has their own schedule from the beginning of the week, I think they will move according to their individual schedule.
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