GB and Lithuania all square in Vilnius
Date published :
05 Mar 2010 - 17:18:01
Debutant James Ward and team-mate Dan Evans enjoyed contrasting fortunes as Great Britain and Lithuania shared the points on the opening day of their Davis Cup clash.
Ward, the 23-year-old son of a London cabbie, cruised to a 6-4 6-2 6-4 victory over Lithuanian number two Laurynas Grigelis to give Britain the perfect start to the Europe/Africa Zone Group II tie in Vilnius. It was the first win in a live rubber for Britain by anyone other than Tim Henman, Greg Rusedski or Andy Murray in 13 years, and was just what was required by his side as they attempted to stave off an embarrassing defeat.
However, Evans was unable to keep the momentum going as he went down 6-1 4-6 7-6 (7/5) 3-6 6-3 in his first five-set match to former world junior champion Ricardas Berankis to leave the tie finely balanced going into Saturday's doubles.
Ward was at least able to celebrate his own achievement after what proved a comfortable victory.
He told www.lta.org.uk: "It was a big win. Obviously your first Davis Cup match is always a big win, and I'm glad I got through it.
"He had played Davis Cup before but I'm confident in my own ability and I'm serving well, which on a fast court like this is tough to break at any time, so I'm very happy."
