Finland is the first nation to reach the semifinals of the 2024 Davis Cup in Malaga, Spain. On Tuesday in the quarterfinals, Finland defeated Canada, the defending Davis Cup champion, two matches to one.
Finland was led by Otto Virtanen of Hyvinkaa. The 22-year-old first beat Gabriel Diallo of Montreal, 6-4, 7-5 in a singles matchup. Virtanen then teamed up with Harri Heliovaara to beat the Canadian duo of Vasek Pospisil of Vernon, British Columbia, and Alexis Galarneau of Laval, Quebec 7-5, 6-3 in doubles action.
Virtanen made his grand slam debut earlier this year. At the 2023 United States Open, he lost to the 30th seed, Tomas Martin Etcheverry of Argentina, in the first round, 6-3, 6-7, 1-6, 6-4, 7-6.
In the group stage of the 2023 Davis Cup Finals in Split, Croatia in September, Virtanen won all three of his singles matches. He defeated Botic van de Zandschulp of the Netherlands 7-6, 6-4, Dino Prizmic of Croatia 6-4, 3-6, 6-3, and then Mackenzie McDonald of the United States 7-6, 1-6, 7-6. Finland advanced to the knockout round by finishing in second place in Group D, only behind the Netherlands.
Heilovarra meanwhile is considered one of the top doubles players in the world. He is currently ranked 29th in the world. Heilovarra has been ranked as high as seventh in the men’s doubles rankings. A year ago in 2022, he reached the quarterfinals of the French Open and United States Open alongside Lloyd Glasspool of Great Britain. Finland will now face the winner of Australia and the Czech Republic in the semifinals on Friday. Australia faces the Czech Republic in the second quarterfinal matchup on Wednesday.
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