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7/11/09 6:53 PM | Ricky Dimon
Bob and Mike Bryan put the Americans on the scoreboard in their Davis Cup tie against Croatia, but they still trail 2-1. Now it's up to James Blake to keep Team USA alive as he takes on Marin Cilic in Sunday's opening singles rubber.
The Americans are alive in Croatia heading into the final day of Davis Cup quarterfinal action after twins Bob and Mike Bryan clobbered Lovro Zovko and Roko Karanusic 6-3, 6-1, 6-3 on Saturday. Team USA lost both of Friday's singles rubbers to the host Croats in five sets, but the Bryan Brothers needed a mere one hour and eight minutes to get the visitors on the scoreboard.
It makes the third career meeting between James Blake and Marin Cilic a high-stakes affair. Blake leads the head-to-head series with Cilic 2-0, and he will have to make it 3-0 if the Americans are going to extend the tie to a decisive fifth rubber. In fact Blake has never even lost a set to Cilic; he hammered the Croat 6-1, 6-2 back in 2006, then crushed him 6-3, 6-4, 6-4 in the fourth round of the 2008 U.S. Open.
But Cilic, of course, is a completely different player now. At 20 years old, he is up to No. 15 in the world thanks to an impressive 30-11 match record so far in 2009. He is coming off a third-round performance at Wimbledon, where he lost to eventual semifinalist Tommy Haas 10-8 in the fifth set, and on Friday he outlasted Mardy Fish 8-6 in the fifth set. Cilic has won two titles this year; first in Chennai and then in Zagreb.
Blake, on the other hand, is at a much different point in his career and he is a relatively disappointing 19-14 this season. To go along with a first-round upset loss at the French Open to Leonardo Mayer, Blake lost his Wimbledon opener to Andreas Seppi. Nonetheless, Blake has enjoyed two recent runner-up performances, including one on clay (Estoril). He will have to bounce back, however, from squandering a two-set lead to Ivo Karlovic and losing 7-5 in the fifth.
Whereas Blake was the clear favorite in each of their first two encounters, Cilic is definitely expected to win this one and put Croatia in the Davis Cup semifinals. Neither Blake nor Cilic prefer to play on clay, but the surface does give Cilic time to set up for his forehand, which requires a long, loopy backswing. Cilic will also be playing in front of what should be an inspired home crowd. Given that advantage as well as his current form, Cilic should get the job done in four sets.
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