Croatia Pounce On Rafael Nadal, Carlos Alcaraz Absence As Spain Crash In Davis Cup

Marin Cilic on Wednesday led Croatia into the Davis Cup semi-finals, knocking out six-time champions Spain who were missing Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal, the world's two top-ranked players.

Marin Cilic on Wednesday led Croatia into the Davis Cup semi-finals, knocking out six-time champions Spain who were missing Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal, the world's two top-ranked players. World number 17 Cilic, a former US Open champion, fought back to defeat 13th-ranked Pablo Carreno Busta 5-7, 6-3, 7-6 (7/5) as Croatia booked a semi-final clash against Australia. Earlier Wednesday, Borna Coric had set the 2005 and 2018 champions on their way, defeating Roberto Bautista Agut 6-4, 7-6 (7/4).

Cilic, 34, who made his Davis Cup debut back in 2006, dropped the first set, gave up a break in the decider and was 1/4 down in the tiebreak before triumphing after three hours and 13 minutes on court.

His 20 aces helped alleviate the damage caused by 15 double faults as the 10,000-strong home crowd at the Palacio de Deportes was stunned into silence by Croatia who were runners-up to Russia in the 2021 final.

"It was incredible battle," said Cilic.

However, he admitted that the absence of US Open champion Alcaraz and 22-time Grand Slam title winner Nadal played into the hands of Croatia who had lost all of their three previous Davis Cup meetings with Spain.