Switzerland: The 2014 Davis Cup Journey, Kazakhstan — The “Easy” Tie

 
Kazakhstan was supposed to be the easy one. With Fed’s extra commitment to Davis Cup, expectations were increasingly high for a Swiss march to the finish line. The quarterfinals were to be a minor speed bump on the road to victory.

Well…one should know by now that Davis Cup is rarely predictable.

Things seemed normal as preparations for the Davis Cup quarterfinal match in Kazakhstan began as usual…

The Swiss bromance continued…

And there was Fed!porn. J.D. is warning all straight men to cover their eyes for a moment…

The big story that weekend, however, was that Stan was not feeling so much The Man. Expectations had been high for the Swiss champion after his AO win, and two Round of 16 exits at the Indian Wells and Miami Masters had critics shaking their heads. Then came an inspired Andrey Golubev, who pounced viciously on the Stanimal in the first rubber.

It went something like this:

Ooooh, Stan unleashes the FEARHAND. RIGHT ON THE LINE!

— Tennis Inside Out (@TennisInsideOut) April 4, 2014

Stan chases every ball, but Golubev’s got control. 5-4. — Tennis Inside Out (@TennisInsideOut) April 4, 2014

Big serve and Golubev has the first set. DAMMIT.
— Tennis Inside Out (@TennisInsideOut) April 4, 2014

Oh yeah, baby, returning smashes like a boss. BPs… — Tennis Inside Out (@TennisInsideOut) April 4, 2014

And Golubev works his way back to deuce. Like he does.
— Tennis Inside Out (@TennisInsideOut) April 4, 2014

     
 
In the second set, Stan hit a miracle shot to keep him in a game. Umpire Carlos Bernardes called “not-up.” Video replay showed he’d gotten there in time. Stan went ballistic.

 
His arguments falling on deaf ears, Stan found it hard to shake his bitter mood. He lost the second set, but fought back and won the third.

LOL. RT @naughtyT Stan not exactly running with the momentum but he is kind of staggering with it. — Tennis Inside Out (@TennisInsideOut) April 4, 2014

The fourth set was a battle to a tiebreak, but Golubev was GOATing, and even net cords fell his way.

Seriously, did Golubev make a crossroads deal or something?

— Tennis Inside Out (@TennisInsideOut) April 4, 2014

 
Things even got tough between Stan and Captain Seve, their interactions varying between arguments, lectures, petulant pouts and stony stares.

Too soon it was all over, Golubev winning 7-6(5), 6-2, 3-6, 7-6(5).

After a tough battle lost, Stan was understandably a bit testy with the press.

Aww RT @IsabelleMusy Wawrinka in press: “You are going to call all the world’s sports psychologists to understand why I lost this match” — Tola (@tola_rf) April 4, 2014

Luckily the day ended on a higher note, as Federer took out Kukushkin in straights.

And Fed had faith…

“I trust Stan. I hope he’s gonna be fit and healthy. He’s gonna fight till the end.”. Yo, @rogerfederer @stanwawrinka bromance much?

— What’s in a name (@mbthecool19) April 4, 2014

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