The New Zealand Davis Cup team has been beaten in its Asia/Oceania Group I relegation playoff against Taiwan in Taipei this evening.
The home team scored a 3-1 overall victory over the Kiwis with a win in the first of the reverse singles sealing the result as Liang-Chi Huang defeated Dan King-Turner 3-6 6-7(4) 1-6.
After losing the opening two singles matches on the first day King-Turner and Rubin Statham kept the Kiwis in the clash with a four set victory in the doubles to take the contest live into the final day and the first of the reverse singles.
Huang ranked at 353 won the first set 6-3 but then King-Turner with an ATP ranking of 357 worked his way to a 5-1 lead in the second set, including a set point before the home player came back to win in the tiebreak and then wrap up the match 6-1 in the third set.
The loss means that after a year back in the strong Group I of Asia/Oceania in Davis Cup New Zealand now drops to Group II and will play Lebanon, away in February 2013.
