The Azul tennis player was in charge of achieving the decisive point in Zagreb, to cut a wait that had been a hundred years.
Federico Delbonis, one of the heroes of the team of Davis Cup of Argentina that was crowned champion for the first and only time the November 27, 2016 when they beat Croatia 3-2, in Zagreb, he considered today that he felt “the Burruchaga of tennis“when he won the fifth point against Ivo Karlovic, which sparked the celebration and settled a pending issue in national sport.
“I felt like the Burruchaga of tennis, the one who scored the goal to win the title, but the most valuable thing was the human group that (Daniel) Orsanic built and allowed him to win the series and the previous points, which were very important to be able to achieve the goal“, analyzed Delbo, 31, in a talk with Télam.
The left-hander from Azul confessed that although five years passed, it seemed like the final against Croatia was yesterday, and as a good football fan (he is a Boca fan), he compared his triumph with Jorge Luis Burruchaga’s goal, the third in the World Cup final. Mexico ’86 that Argentina beat Germany 3-2, in another sporting feat abroad.
“The Davis was something very desired, much loved by the environment of tennis and sports in general. When we all raised the trophy together to bring it home it was a great moment, I think the best that happened to us.“, admitted the tennis player, who in the fifth point swept the giant Karlovic 6-3, 6-4 and 6-2 to the delirium of the 5000 Argentine fans who took over the Zagreb Arena and to bury a century of frustrations, which included four lost finals (1981, 2006, 2008 and 2011).
The series between Argentines and Croats was defined on November 27, with the Balkans ahead 2-1 on the scoreboard and a historic comeback by Juan Martín Del Potro from Tandil to equalize the tie (he beat Marin Cilic in the fifth set after having been two sets down) and then Delbonis came into action.
“I thought the final was lost, I just started to believe when Delpo made a ‘Big Willy’ and freed himself, then he tilted the game to his side and I tried to focus on mine, the fifth point, although mentally it was very difficult to do so“, he confessed.
The keys for Argentina to win the Davis Cup according to Delbonis
When reviewing the keys to the conquest, the Azulean did not hesitate to highlight the ability of captain Daniel Orsanic and his coaching staff to define strategies and with regard to the management of the group.
“Orsanic knew how to play his cards well, in the sense of how he treated each one, that everyone feel important and when he had to make difficult decisions. He knew how to listen and that was key, we tennis players like to be heard“he recalled.
Although the great merit went to the team, Delbonis did not hide that Del Potro was the great winning card, with feats such as beating Murray at home when he was number one on the planet or reversing an incredible match against Marin Cilic in Zagreb.
“Delpo was our width of swords, the one that gave the most. Obviously all champions have an emblem and he was ours. From the outset, he understood that he was joining a team that was armed, he took it very well, he adapted quickly and then we know everything he contributed“, he finished.
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