Former world number four Tomas Berdych was left shocked by something other than his team’s superb victory during the second round of Davis Cup qualifying.
Berdych, the captain of Czechia’s Davis Cup team, watched his squad defeat the USA in their second round of Davis Cup qualifying.
The Czech squad were trailing 1-2 before Jiri Lehecka and Jakub Mensik won their singles matches, sending Czechia through to the Davis Cup Finals.
While the US team struggled, nothing should be taken away from the Eastern European squad, who displayed ironclad mental fortitude in front of an expectant and raucous American crowd.
Berdych, who was visiting the US for the first time as part of a Davis Cup team, pinpointed a factor that surprised him upon his arrival at in the US.
Tomas Berdych’s US surprise
Speaking to reporters after his team’s victory, Berdych said: “Well, look, I mean, I played Davis Cup for many years, and I have quite a big experience there.
“Honestly, coming to the States, it was my first time, and I was quite surprised, to be honest, what was waiting [for] us here, and the way the [American] team was, you know, preparing the tie, how they were treating us.
“I think this is definitely the best, you know, the best way how to show them how we prepared, how we took the facility and everything that was waiting us here.
“That’s the best possible way what we can do, you know. So we won. We beat the very strong U.S. team on the home soil, which never happened for our team in the past.
“So I think this is definitely the best, you know, what we can do here in this week, and whatever was around, it was around. We deal with that much better. We didn’t feel that heat and that humid, as been said before. So I hope the guys were fine with that.
“That’s it. So we are leaving States as winners, and we are the team that are going to Bologna.”
While this result marked another disappointment for the American team, Czechia now have the opportunity to add to their three Davis Cup triumphs.
Their first title came in 1980, when the country was named Czechoslovakia, before adding to their Davis Cup collection in 2012 and 2013.
Who could Czechia face in the Davis Cup Finals?
Czechia have joined a number of nations in the final stage of the Davis Cup.
Argentina, Austria, France and Germany have qualified alongside Czechia after winning their respective second-round ties, while Italy automatically qualified as the host nation.
The finals will be played out between November 18 and 23 in Bologna, Italy.
Italy is the defending champion, having defeated the Netherlands 2-0 in the 2024 final. The country also won the title in 2023, meaning they could win three Davis Cup titles in four years if they triumph in Bologna this year.
