The Tricolor team that arrived in Madrid, led by Viver, ran into the main favorite for the title, Russia, and the host, Spain.
EFE
Ecuador left behind its adventure for the Davis Cup Finals. An experience that triggered the competitive mood and the dedication to the end of a group of players who have nothing to do with the elite of the circuit but who in the defense of the colors of their selection are capable of facing anyone.
The team that arrived in Madrid, led by Raúl Viver, ran into the main favorite for the title, Russia, and the host, Spain. Ecuador was up to the task.
The results have not rewarded the passage through the Madrid Arena of the Ecuadorian team that questioned the triumph of the Spanish team on the first day and then faced and resisted the Russian push, with two players among the five best in the world.
Ecuador did not win any matches. But Emilio Gómez pushed Pablo Carreño, Olympic bronze in Tokyo and champion this year in Hamburg, to the limit and the doubles formed by Diego Hidalgo and Gonzalo Escobar had the victory in hand against the Spanish doubles completed by Marcel Granollers. In both games against Spain he had options. Won a set. And the victory could fall next to anyone and turned his back on Viver’s team.
A day later, against Russia, the same thing happened. Although it was number two Roberto Quiroz who put the fifth player in the world Andrey Rublev on the ropes who needed all three sets to win his point. And the doubles, again, was at the level of the Russian duet, who played with everything and who prevailed with difficulties.
“I am very proud. They weren’t the results we wanted, but the fight, the competitive level, the level at which the whole team played was very, very good. We could have won the series against Spain. I can never complain about the spirit of this team ”, summed up the Ecuador captain, back home to the Davis Cup.
And it is that the players of Ecuador go to the limit when they defend the yellow of their country. It goes beyond playing by yourself. “The Davis Cup has always been something of a religion. For me, going to a Davis Cup series, it was like, I don’t know, like going to mass on Sundays for someone religious. I grew up with it ”, describes Roberto Quiroz, the Ecuadorian number two.
The Davis Cup is much more for Ecuador, a country that extends a tennis dynasty. Emilio Gómez is the son of the legendary Andrés Gómez, champion of Roland Garros in 1990. Quiroz himself is the nephew of this historic Ecuadorian sport, a national hero. And both Roberto Quiroz and Emilio Gómez are cousins of Nicolás Lappenti, who was among the top ten in the world.
“This journey to the Madrid Finals has lasted eleven years,” recalls number two from Ecuador. “This trip has been incredible. Of course, it is not over. Being in this position with our rankings tells you a lot about what the Davis Cup means ”, adds Quiroz, who discovers the secret of success in the union of the players.
Now, Ecuador looks towards 2022. “For me and for the team, being in the finals means a lot. It is a memory that we will have forever and we hope to be able to live it again. “
Gonzalo Escobar and Diego Hidalgo were the best news for Raul Viver’s team. This pair of doubles mentored the best. He won a set to the Russian team and had the victory in hand against Spain. A guarantee for Ecuador in the Davis Cup. A secure.
“I think we are going to be a very tough team to defeat after these two series. Doubles make us more dangerous, because before that, we didn’t have a solvent partner, ”highlights Ecuador’s number one Emilio Gómez.
“We are ready for next year,” says Gómez. Ecuador wants to return. (D)
