
Tags: Blaise Bicknell, Jamaica, John Chin, Tennis/Bermuda
Jamaica and Bermuda will have it all to play for when they square off on Saturday’s final day of Davis Cup Americas Group III qualifying action in Costa Rica, with the winner set to claim the last available berth to the World Group II Play-offs.
Both teams suffered contrasting defeats in their respective top-of-the-pool clashes on Friday, as Jamaica fell 2-1 to Puerto Rico in Pool B and Bermuda succumbed to a 2-0 loss to Bolivia in Pool A, leaving them one match away from promotion in what promises to be a high-stakes showdown.
Jamaica, drawn in Pool B alongside Puerto Rico, Honduras, and Venezuela, had positioned themselves for automatic qualification after back-to-back 2-1 victories over Honduras and Venezuela. However, their bid came undone against a well-rounded Puerto Rican side that entered the match with a superior 5-1 record, edging Jamaica’s 4-2.
Puerto Rico seized the early initiative when Jake Fellows outlasted Jamaica’s John Chin in the opening singles encounter, as he took the first set in a tiebreak 7-6 (7-2) before closing out the match 6-2.
But Jamaica’s top seed, Blaise Bicknell, who remained undefeated throughout the tournament, responded with a commanding 6-3, 6-2 win over Marko Mesarovic to draw the tie level at 1-1 and send the matchup to a decisive doubles contest.
However, the doubles encounter remained Jamaica’s Achilles heel, as Chin and Bicknell were unable to break their winless streak. They fell in straight sets, 6-3, 6-2, to Fellows and Gabriel Evans, as Puerto Rico took the Pool B title and automatic promotion.
Jamaica closed the pool stage in second place with two points, ahead of Venezuela (one point) and Honduras (zero points), who now face relegation to Group IV.
Still, the Jamaicans have one final chance to achieve promotion when they face Bermuda, who also finished second in their pool after a tough loss to Bolivia.
Bolivia capped a flawless campaign in Pool A and sealed top spot and promotion with a 7-6(4), 6-1 win by Murkel Dellien over Bermuda’s Richard Mallory to clinch the tie 2-0.
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