Czech tennis players find themselves trailing 0:1 in the second round of the Davis Cup qualifiers after Jakub Menšík fell in straight sets to American Learner Tien, 2:6, 4:6, at Prague’s O2 arena, according to reports from Czech news outlets.
The 22-year-old Menšík struggled to find his rhythm during the 69-minute encounter, undone by 34 unforced errors compared to just 15 for Tien. With the defeat, the 15th-ranked Czech drops his third career meeting against Tien, who sits two spots higher in the world rankings. The result follows prior losses at the 2026 US Open third round and the 2025 Next Gen ATP Finals.
A Tough Start and Unforced Errors
Menšík opened the match by holding serve, but quickly dropped five consecutive games as Tien capitalized on early opportunities. The Czech player fought off a set-point on his serve at 1:5, yet Tien secured the opening frame after Menšík accumulated 14 unforced errors in the first set alone.
Things failed to stabilize in the second set. Menšík dropped his serve in the third game, immediately broke back, but surrendered his serve again in the fifth game. A late break opportunity at 3:4 slipped away when Tien relied on a strong serve to stave off the threat before comfortably serving out the match and sealing victory on his second match point.
“Těžký zápas a těžký den. Nehrál jsem, jak jsem chtěl. To je tenis. Někdy se na kurtu cítíte dobře a hrajete skvěle a někdy se trápíte a hledáte rytmus, což bylo dnes,” Menšík said in post-match remarks reported by Česká tisková kancelář, describing a difficult day where he struggled to find his rhythm.
“Jsem smutný, že jsem dnes neukázal to nejlepší. Davis Cup je ale týmová soutěž. Doufejme, že Jirka teď ukáže svůj nejlepší výkon,” Menšík added, pointing to the team nature of the tournament and expressing hope for his teammate.
What Comes Next in Prague
The pressure now shifts to Jiří Lehečka to keep Czech hopes alive in the best-of-five qualifying tie. Lehečka takes to the court next in Prague to face world number four and recent US Open finalist Ben Shelton.
The winner of the qualifier secures a spot in the eight-team Davis Cup final phase, scheduled to take place from November 24 to 29 in Bologna, Italy.
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