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Blake, Davenport lead US to Hopman Cup glory for record third time
Perth, Jan 11: U.S. win record third Hopman Cup. The United States won a record third Hopman Cup on Saturday (January 10) when Lindsay Davenport and James Blake clinched the $A1 million mixed team event.
Perth, Jan 11: U.S. win record third Hopman Cup. The United States won a record third Hopman Cup on Saturday (January 10) when Lindsay Davenport and James Blake clinched the $A1 million mixed team event.
The Americans teamed up to beat Karol Kucera and Daniela Hantuchova 6-2 6-3 in the decisive mixed doubles after Kucera had earlier hauled the Slovaks level by beating Blake in a thriller at the Burswood Dome.
The U.S. victory puts Blake's name in the tournament's record books as the only man to have won the Cup twice -- last year he partnered Serena Williams to the silverware.
Chanda Rubin and Justin Gimelstob in 1997 provided the other U.S. triumph. Davenport's pre-Australian Open stock rose further after her match against Hantuchova during which she swatted aside the slight Slovak 6-3 6-1. The three-times grand slam champion's form has improved with each match in the Western Australian city and on Saturday she was irresistible.
Not only was Davenport powerful, but she was deadly accurate and made no unforced errors throughout the 51 minute match.
Kucera had made a mammoth effort to claw the unlikely finalists back into the Hopman Cup reckoning when he beat Blake 4-6 6-4 7-6 to level the tie 1-1.
But they had little left in the clincher as the American duo romped through the mixed, both Blake and Davenport serve and volleying with panache.
The Slovaks only reached the final after the already-qualified Australian team had to pull out following an injury to Alicia Molik, and were powerless to hold off the American onslaught.
Bureau Report
Chanda Rubin and Justin Gimelstob in 1997 provided the other U.S. triumph. Davenport's pre-Australian Open stock rose further after her match against Hantuchova during which she swatted aside the slight Slovak 6-3 6-1. The three-times grand slam champion's form has improved with each match in the Western Australian city and on Saturday she was irresistible.
Not only was Davenport powerful, but she was deadly accurate and made no unforced errors throughout the 51 minute match.
Kucera had made a mammoth effort to claw the unlikely finalists back into the Hopman Cup reckoning when he beat Blake 4-6 6-4 7-6 to level the tie 1-1.
But they had little left in the clincher as the American duo romped through the mixed, both Blake and Davenport serve and volleying with panache.
The Slovaks only reached the final after the already-qualified Australian team had to pull out following an injury to Alicia Molik, and were powerless to hold off the American onslaught.
Bureau Report