Kenya seals date with Nigeria in Davis Cup Africa semis

Kenya sealed a place in the semi-finals of Davis Cup Africa Group IV tournament on Friday,  but the team has its work clearly cut out for it when it takes to the courts against Nigeria  at the Ecology Tennis Club Clay Courts in Kigali on Saturday.

Coach George Oyoo's charges overcame Cameroon by 3-0 matches in their last Pool "A" fixture to hand themselves a lifeline in the battle for promotion. Following the loss,  Cameroon were tossed out of the tournament.

Kael Shalin Shah got Kenyans off to a good start by sweeping aside Boriss Kamdem 6-4, 6-2 in the first singles before Ismael Changawa doubled the lead by thrashing Cliford Nkwain 6-2, 6-4 in the second singles.

In the doubles category, Keean Shah and Ibrahim Kibet outwitted Alexis Hagoua and Kamdem 6-2, 6-4 for a resounding 3-0 victory to keep Kenya in the title race.

Kenya will now meet Pool “B” winners Nigeria for a chance to qualify for a place in the Group III category next year.

Kenya, who are the top seeds in the tournament after being relegated from Group III in 2022, finished Pool “A” in second spot with matches’ win-loss record of 7-2.

Third-seeded Ghana won the group,  also with a 7-2 record, but had seen off all their opponents Kenya 2-1, Cameroon 2-1 and Botswana 3-0. Cameroon and Botswana finished the pool stage with 4-5 and 0-9, respectively.

The Nigerians finished on top of their pool without dropping a set after demolishing Rwanda, Angola and Mozambique 3-0 followed by Rwanda (5-4), Angola (3-6) and Mozambique (1-8).

Top two sides in each group cross over in promotional play-offs (A1 v B2, B1 v A2) with the best two teams advancing to Africa Group III in 2024. The bottom two in each group also play in relegation play-offs (A3 v B4, B3 v A4) where the last two get demoted to Group V. The eight-nation tournament runs from July 26-29.

Elsewhere, Serbian Laslo Djere defeated titleholder Lorenzo Musetti of Italy to reach the semi-finals of the ATP Hamburg Open on Friday. World number 57 Djere won in straight sets 7-5, 6-3 against the 2022 Hamburg Open winner and third seed, who came into the match as the favourite.

The 28-year-old, who has won two previous titles on clay, will face China’s Zhang Zhizhen, who defeated Daniel Altmaieron Friday.

Zhang, ranked 79 in the world, won 6-4, 6-4 after breaking the German once in each set on the way to his first ATP semi-finals.

In the other half of the draw, Hamburg-born fourth-seed Alexander Zverev faces Luca Van Assche in the quarter-finals while top seed Casper Ruud takes on Arthur Fils.