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Hubert Hurkacz earned a critical win for Poland against Switzerland's Stan Wawrinka while Magda Linette's heroics delivered the crucial third point to book their team a spot in the City Finals at the United Cup, here on Tuesday.
With Hurkacz's win giving Poland the 2-1 lead, Linette held off Jil Teichmann to win 5-7, 6-4, 6-1 to clinch the tie. Poland will face Italy in the City Finals on Wednesday. The winner of the tie will advance to the United Cup Final Four in Sydney. The team with the best record among the runner-ups across Perth, Sydney and Brisbane will also advance to the Final Four. Hurkacz battled through a tense match against Wawrinka to win 7-6(5), 6-4. "Never had a chance before to play against Stan, so I was really looking forward to that match," Hurkacz said. "He's such a legend of the sport. I was watching him win the Grand Slams and now I can share the court with him, so that was a huge pleasure for me," Hurkacz said. With a chance to close out the win, No.48 Linette held her nerve to earn her first win over No.35 Teichmann. The two had played just once, at the 2021 Chicago 500, and the Swiss won in straight sets. "I played against Jil and she smoked me the last time so I knew I had to bring my best tennis," Linette said. Linette jumped out to a 3-0 lead in both the first and second sets, but Teichmann's battling qualities kept the result in the balance until the final stages of the 2-hour and 43-minute battle. Teichmann came through a monumental fifth game of the opening set to get back on serve. Linette grew frustrated after seeing her lead blown and Teichmann was able to secure a second break to complete the comeback. Teichmann nearly pulled out a straight-set win in the second set. Again Linette led by a break and again, the Swiss pulled her back. She broke Linette down 5-3. But this time, Linette stood tall. She set aside her disappointment quickly and broke right back to force a third. "I was so frustrated in the first set when I had a good lead and I didn't do a very good job, I wasn't focused enough. I'm really happy that I was able to reset after the first set and come back strong," Linette said. The final set was a test of fitness, and Teichmann paid for her two hours of running to stay level with Linette. Two tired double faults from the 25-year-old Swiss gave Linette a 2-0 lead and she raced away to the win. In a dead rubber match later, the Swiss team of Belinda and Marc-Andrea Huesler knocked off Alicja Rosolska and Kacper Zuk in straight sets. --IANS ak/ ( 479 Words) 2023-01-03-22:06:03 (IANS)
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