Sonchat and Sanchai claim decisive win as Thailand surge to victory over Pakistan

Sonchat and Sanchai claim decisive win as Thailand surge to victory over Pakistan

Thailand will return to the Davis Cup's Asia/Oceania Group 1 next year after winning the doubles against Pakistan to take an unassailable 3-0 lead yesterday.

Sonchat and Sanchai Ratiwatana in action against Pakistan.

Twins Sonchat and Sanchai Ratiwatana beat Aisam Qureshi and Aqeel Khan 7-5, 6-2, 6-2 at the National Tennis Development Centre in Muang Thong Thani.

Sanchai said: “It was easier than we had expected. We are happy to help Thailand gain promotion to Group 1.”

Thailand captain Paradorn Srichaphan said: “Sonchat and Sanchai had an excellent match. It is good that we gain promotion to Group 1 although it will be much tougher.’’

Thailand had won the opening singles matches against Pakistan on Friday.

In today’s meaningless reverse singles, Thailand No.1 Danai Udomchoke is scheduled to meet Qureshi and Prachya Isarow will meet Samir Iftikhar, although both sides can change their players.

In Perth, Lleyton Hewitt steered Australia back to the Davis Cup World Group with a dominating performance in the doubles win over Uzbekistan yesterday.

The 33-year-old warhorse, continually fending off retirement questions, partnered Chris Guccione to a 6-3, 7-6 (7/5), 6-2 victory over the Uzbek pair, Denis Istomin and Farrukh Dustov, to clinch the tie.

The 28-time Davis Cup champions were in an impregnable position after Hewitt and youngster Nick Kyrgios won Friday’s opening singles in straight sets.

The Australians, playing on their favoured grass, have not dropped a set so far in the tie ahead of today’s dead reverse singles.

Hewitt, who took his 15-year career Davis Cup winning tally to 56 matches with 41 singles and 15 doubles, has faced a barrage of enquiries about what his future holds.

The grizzled veteran, who has undergone five painful surgeries in five years in an effort to prolong his career, including a knitting of the bone in his troublesome left foot, was his usual ferociously competitive self.

The Aussie pair took just 100 minutes to roll out their straight-sets win in the doubles, shutting the door on Uzbekistan, who were bidding to reach the World Group for the first time.

“We are complete opposite game styles, personalities, everything, in a lot of ways, but we team up really well though and we know what we’re going to get from one another on the court,” Hewitt said of Guccione, his doubles partner. “We don’t play a lot of doubles together, but I feel in these one-off matches we gel pretty well.”

Australia captain Pat Rafter said big-serving Sam Groth would make his Davis Cup debut in one of today’s reverse singles matches.

Australia were forced into a play-off to retain their status in the elite 16-nation World Group after a first-round loss to France in February.

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