Kazakhstan's Number 2 tennis player Andrey Golubev has stunned the world and Stanislas Wawrinka, the World's Number 3, with a stagering win in the Davis Cup quarter-finals on Friday April 4.
Kazakhstan's Number 2 tennis player Andrey Golubev has stunned the world and Stanislas Wawrinka, the World's Number 3, with a stagering win in the Davis Cup quarter-finals on Friday April 4.
The world number three was beaten 7-6 (7/5), 6-2, 3-6, 7-6 (7/5) by Golubev, ranked 64, and Kazakhstan got an early 1-0 lead over Switzerland in Geneva.
Golubev said after one of his biggest career wins: "It was a great match for me. "I played well, it was not easy but I'm happy that I won. The key was to try and be aggressive and not to give him too much time. I think I did good."
Golubev's victory, achieved in just under three and a quarter hours, revived bad memories for Wawrinka who lost both his matches -- a singles and a doubles rubber -- in a 5-0 whitewash victory for Kazakhstan over Switzerland in Astana in 2010, AFP reports.
"I know you're going to consult all the sports psychologists to find out why I lost to Golubev," said Wawrinka wryly. "It came down to a few points that made the difference, which he was able to play freely."
Later the same day Roger Federer saved Stanislas Wawrinka's blushes after the Australian Open champion suffered the shock defeat to Andrey Golubev from Kazakhstan.
17-time Grand Slam winner Federer stormed Mikhail Kukushkin and got a straight 6-4, 6-4, 6-2 win. Federer, the world number four, recorded the second win over Kazakhstan's Kukushkin ranked 56th after having beaten the Kazakh in the first round of Wimbledon in 2011.
"It was important to stay calm. I was well concentrated, felt good in my legs and served well," said Federer.