Davis Cup final: Andy Murray levels tie for GB with Bemelmans win

David Goffin had earlier edged British newcomer Kyle Edmund in five sets, clawing his way back from two sets down.

Following that, Andy Murray will quite likely make short work of Bemelmans in the next singles rubber.

Organizers have warned spectators coming to the 13,000-seat arena to take extra time in arriving because of time-consuming security checks.

Goffin finally recovered his senses to put a tiring Edmund in his place, but it was a mighty scare.

On Saturday, the Scotsman will team up with brother Jaime Murray against the Belgian duo of Kimmer Coppejans and Steve Darcis.

In the second rubber of the day, Murray and Bemelmans both broke early in the first set, but the two-time Grand Slam champion showed his experience by snatching serve again to take a 4-2 lead.

But he gave that back right away and Murray levelled at 4-4.

Goffin tested Edmund’s nerve by winning three games in a row, but the 20-year-old passed it with flying colours, clinching the set with an ace.

Whether they would want Goffin to play all three days is debatable but the 24-year-old was on a high after his first ever comeback from two sets down.

After Murray had saved a set point in the 10th game of the third, the decisive break came in the next as Bemelmans was broken to love to move Great Britain closer to victory.

He would be the first to point out that Britain would not even be here were it not for James Ward’s heroic win against the United States of America in March, but since then it has been mission Murray.

Murray insisted the ire of the locals is only firing him to an achievement that will rank with anything he has won in the sport to date. As many predicted, it was one apiece after two rubbers with the all-important doubles rubber coming up as the determining key to this tie.

“No, we will try to get them involved as much as we can, as much as we are allowed to”. We’ll have this one at home also.

But Goffin turned the tide in the third set and despite sending sending down a fourth double-fault on his first set point, he was back in the match.

How fitting it would be if the world No 2 went on to beat Goffin in the first of Sunday’s reverse singles to secure his country’s first triumph in this historic competition since 1936. “Kyle had good intentions and was really heavy with every forehand”, Goffin said.

Edmund prepared for the Davis Cup final in the South American Challengers, winning the title in Buenos Aires scoring consecutive bagels over the experienced Horacio Zeballos and Carlos Berlocq. “It was tough to manage but I stayed calm and waited for my chance”.

Captains can change their picks and Belgium’s Johan van Herck has indicated that he could take advantage of that option.

Murray followed the pair on to court and there was no such drama.

Van Herck said: “Okay, there was noise, but there will always be noise. So I’m surprised he could hear what I was saying”. He said “for a second warning”. “It will be a tough match but me and Jamie have played some good doubles before and hopefully we can do the same tomorrow”.

The British No 3 won the first five games, and would have won the set to love had he not missed the baseline with a forehand by the smallest of margins. “I don’t see any problems there”.