Davis Cup final: Belgium and Britain end day one all square

Belgium and Britain's top tennis players both fulfilled their duties with contrasting fortunes during the opening day of the 2015 Davis Cup. Belgian number one David Goffin had to dig deep to secure the first point while his British counterpart Andy Murray enjoyed a straight sets win. 

David Goffin came from two sets down to beat Kyle Edmund in the first match of the Davis Cup final between Belgium and Great Britain. Reuters/Jason Cairnduff

Goffin came from two sets down to gain the first point of the final for Belgium. The world number 16 looked anything but that as Davis Cup debutant Kyle Edmund raced away with the opening two sets after 75 minutes of play.

But as the 20-year-old tired, so Goffin’s game started to flow. The reversal of fortune was stark. The Belgian won the third 6-2, the fourth 6-1 and was domination incarnate in the decider which finished 6-0.

“It was tough for me at the beginning,” said Goffin. “But I knew I would have a chance in the match. I had the chance in the third set and I knew that when it was 3-1 to me, the match turned and after that it was better for me.”

For the first hour, Edmund, who’s just breached the top 100, made a mockery of the ranking system. His heavy serve and forehand pummelled the Belgian who cut a forlorn figure in front of a raucous partisan crowd at the Flanders Expo in Ghent.

6-3 6-1 to the Briton on the specially laid clay court was not the script expected by the nearly 12,000 Belgian fans. The 1,500 travelling Britons were lapping up the hosts' discomfort.  But from the brink of disaster, Goffin edged his way back into contention.

“I was worried at the end of the second set as Kyle was playing really well and playing like he had nothing to lose," Goffin said. "But I stayed calm. I was expected to win the first point and that is what I did.”

Edmund said his body eventually failed him as he let the Belgian back into the match. He said cramps in his legs affected his movements.

“I just couldn’t keep up physically. I knew I had the game to beat him and I was disappointed with the way it finished.”

Andy Murray completed a straight sets victory over the Belgian number two Ruben Bemelmans. It finished 6-3 6-2 7-5 in just over two hours to bring the countries level at 1-1 in the best of five series.

Murray, 28, will team up with his brother, Jamie, on Saturday for the doubles in a bid to take a 2-1 lead into Sunday’s singles matches.

Belgium are playing in their first Davis Cup final since 1904. They were beaten back then by a team representing ‘the British Isles’. The ‘Islanders’ haven’t won the Davis Cup since 1936 when Fred Perry and Bunny Austin led them to glory against Australia.

Murray, who was docked a point in the third set for an audible obscenity – swearing in non- tennis circles - said there was a long way to go before emulating the cream of ’36. “I believe we can win the tie – obviously - otherwise there’d be no point us being here. But it’s going to be tough, that’s for sure.”