No Alcaraz, no problem: Spain stuns Germany to reach Davis Cup final

BOLOGNA, Italy (AP) — Spain reached the Davis Cup final thanks to doubles pair Marcel Granollers and Pedro Martínez, who defeated Germany’s Tim Pütz and Kevin Krawietz 6-2, 3-6, 6-3 Saturday for a 2-1 win in their semifinal.

Alexander Zverev had kept the Germans’ hopes alive with a 7-6 (2), 7-6 (5) win over Jaume Munar after Pablo Carreño Busta got Spain off to a winning start against Jan-Lennard Struff.

Carreño Busta saved five consecutive set points in the tiebreaker before beating the German veteran 6-4, 7-6 (6).

But Granollers and Martínez shocked Pütz and Krawietz by dealing them just their second Davis Cup loss.

It sent the Spanish team, which was without injured No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz, back into the final for the first time in six years.

Spain will face two-time defending champion Italy, which defeated Belgium on Friday.

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AP tennis: https://apnews.com/hub/tennis