Belgium, Britain tied 1-1 after first day of Davis Cup final

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The final against Belgium is tied at 1-1 after the first day of play at the Flanders Expo in Ghent and Andy and Jamie Murray are hot favourites to win the doubles rubber on Saturday.

After David Goffin’s superb comeback against Kyle Edmund earlier on day one in Ghent, Great Britain needed the world number two to give their hopes a boost and he was more than up to the task.

Murray was asked about the Paris attacks on Monday, and whether he was scared to go to Belgium at the end of the month to play in the Davis Cup final.

Belgium is seeking its first Davis Cup title, while Britain has not won the coveted team competition in 79 years.

The two have never played but it would be wishful thinking in the extreme to believe that the more accomplished Goffin, backed by an enthusiastic home crowd, won’t get the tie off to a winning start against Edmund for Belgium.

Team Belgium consist of Goffin, two-time ATP victor Steve Darcis as well as the relatively unknown duo of Ruben Bemelmans and Kimmer Coppejans, the latter of which will only feature in the doubles rubber.

Inside the waif-like frame of David Goffin – he is the closest that elite tennis has to a size-zero player – beats a big heart, as he demonstrated when coming from two sets down to defeat British debutant Kyle Edmund in the opening rubber of the Davis Cup final.

The Murray brothers scored crucial points as a doubles team against France in the quarter-final and Australia in the semi-final. “But I think it’s important for him to realise the level he can obviously play at, and now keep building on that”. “Obviously it affects your mind on the match”.

“We’re also taking sometimes like 45 seconds between points to wait for the crowd to calm down and stay quiet, which gives you longer to recover between points, which is fine on a weekend like this for me”. “We won’t do anything until tomorrow night, see how everyone is, see how the doubles has gone”.

Andy Murray levels the Davis Cup final 1-1 for Great Britain after beating Ruben Bemelmans in straight sets.

But after being tested by Bemelmans in front of 13,000 energised spectators, nothing is being taken for granted.

Goffin finally got on the board after 34 minutes and won three games in a row before Edmund closed out the first set with an ace after 45 minutes. He broke back for 4-4, saved a set point at 4-5, and eventually came through on his first match point for 7-5. Only two players before him – John McEnroe and Mats Wilander – have won all eight singles games since the Davis Cup World Group was started.

The doubles were slated for Saturday, with the decisive reverse singles on Sunday. Bemelmans defended one break point, but not a second – Murray moving ahead with a sweetly-struck backhand. Murray is the class player left in the field, and it’s a banker that he’s going to win both singles matches. And the pressure seemed to effect the 24-year-old world number 16 as his game disintegrated against world number 100 Edmund, a surprise choice as Britain’s second singles pick.