By TERRY MADDAFORD
New Zealand is headed to the Davis Cup wilderness following a gut-wrenching 3-2 loss to Pakistan in their Asia/Oceania group one third round clash in Islamabad yesterday.
With the tie locked 2-2 when bad light ended play on Sunday night, New Zealand No 2 Simon Rea was well-placed in the deciding singles.
Level 1-1 with Pakistan No 2 Aqeel Khan but ahead 4-2 in the third set, Rea, on serve, was looking to close it out in four sets.
He completed the third set 6-3 for a decisive 2-1 lead and then went up 3-2 with a service break in the fourth.
It was then all downhill. Khan, ranked 368 in the world compared with Rea's 847, rallied to win the fourth set 6-3 and continued that form into the fifth set, winning 6-2 for a final 7-6 (7-5), 2-6, 3-6, 6-3, 6-2 victory.
New Zealand No 1 Mark Nielsen, who had played the best Davis Cup match of his career earlier on Sunday to beat Pakistani No 1 Aisam Qureshi and keep the tie alive, was obviously disappointed.
Speaking to the Herald from the Islamabad Club after watching Rea's demise on the clay court, Nielsen said: "It is going to be a long trip home. Pakistan got better and Simon ran out of steam.
"We were confident when he took the third set and went up a break in the fourth. From that point he just collapsed. It is very disappointing."
Nielsen said he believed Rea could win.
"After killing their No 2 [Khan] on the first day, I felt Simon had the game to beat him but something just happened."
Nielsen was delighted with his win over Qureshi which followed a disappointing Saturday doubles in which he and Rea lost to Qureshi and Khan in straight sets.
"It was probably my best Davis Cup match ever," said Nielsen. "I was really up for it."
He needed to be to get through the five-hour struggle in which Nielsen, ranked 520, beat Qureshi (204).
"It is disappointing," said Nielsen who will now return to Auckland for three weeks before heading back overseas. "We are going down for sure."
That means New Zealand has been relegated to the Asia/Oceania group 2 and a likely clash with either Korea, Lebanon, Malaysia, Iran, the Philippines, Hong Kong/China or Kuwait in a first round tie next March.
Tennis: Davis Cup drop to follow defeat for NZ
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