Croats Top Germany for 1st World Team Cup TitlePosted on May 28, 2006 Mario Ancic, Ivan Ljubicic and Ivo Karlovic knocked down another team record as Croatia captured its first-ever World Team Cup title Saturday with a win over the homecountry Germans in the final.
The serving giant "Dr." Ivo Karlovic stood in for the back-ailing Mario "Baby Goran" Ancic, putting Croatia up 1-0 with a 7-6(5), 6-4 over another "B"-squader, German Alexander Waske who was in for the back-ailing Philipp Kohlschreiber. Ivan Ljubicic then gave the Croats an unassailable 2-0 lead with a 6-4, 6-4 win over Nicolas Kiefer. "It's a fantastic achievement to win the World Team Cup, especially after winning the Davis Cup," Ljubicic said. "We showed everybody that even on clay we can play well. We are a fantastic, very young team -- I am the oldest at age 27. I think we have other good years to come and we hope we can repeat some of these performances." Germany was attempting to add to its four titles earned in 1989, 1994, 1998 and 2005. It was only the eighth time in the 29-year history of the event that the reigning Davis Cup champions also won the World Team Cup. In the doubles, Germans Michael Kohlmann and Alexander Waske won their fourth match of the week, beating Karlovic and Ljubicic 7-6(3), 6-3. |
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