ULM, Germany (AP) Daniel Brands secured Germany's Davis Cup World Group place for another year by beating Brazil's Thomaz Bellucci in their playoff on Sunday, before Florian Meyer completed a 4-1 win for the hosts.
On his Davis Cup singles debut, Brands defeated Bellucci 6-4, 6-2, 6-3 to give the Germans an unassailable lead in the best-of-five match series.
"I'm just happy that I got the third point," said the 26-year-old Brands, who played in place of Philipp Kohlschreiber. Kohlschreiber withdrew shortly beforehand with stomach problems.
Bellucci said he was laboring with a right shoulder injury.
"I didn't play well with the many chances that I had," the top-ranked Brazilian said. "He just played much better than me on the big points."