Russia took an unassailable 2-0 lead over Croatia in the Davis Cup final in Madrid on Sunday to secure their third title and first in 15 years, as Daniil Medvedev outlasted Croatian Marin Cilic 7-6(7) 6-2.
Reigning US Open champion Medvedev had to produce his best tennis to survive a tense first set as a confident Cilic sent across nine forehand winners and won nearly three-quarters of his service points.
The awed crowd inside Madrid Arena was reduced to pin-drop silence as the 1.98-metre titans went into a tiebreak, where Medvedev relied on his backhand to prevail despite an ill-timed double fault.
