The United States kept alive their hopes of reaching the Davis Cup semi-finals with victory in Saturday's doubles to leave them trailing Australia 2-1 in Brisbane.
The hosts had put themselves in the driving seat by winning both singles rubbers on Friday, as Jordan Thompson and Nick Kyrgios shone at Pat Rafter Arena under the guidance of team captain Lleyton Hewitt.
Sam Groth and John Peers then took to the court on Saturday looking to wrap up the tie but were edged out in a hard-fought encounter with Steve Johnson and Jack Sock, 3-6 6-3 6-2 2-6 6-3.
Success allowed Sock to gain a measure of revenge on Thompson after his surprise singles defeat to the 22-year-old, and he told daviscup.com: "Jordan played great yesterday, he deserved to win, he was the better player. But today we were able to regroup and get a win."
US Davis Cup captain Jim Courier added: "I'm super proud of these guys today but it still will take a monstrous effort from us on day three."
Australia, who lost to the USA in the first round last year, will now turn their attention to Sunday's reverse singles as they bid to secure a place in the last four, with Kyrgios facing Sock before Thompson takes on John Isner.
Source: PA
