(Updates with further results)
Nov 26 (Reuters) –
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Canada’s Felix Auger-Aliassime sent over a dozen aces as he beat Lorenzo Musetti 6-3 6-4 to level their Davis Cup semi-final tie with Italy at 1-1 on Saturday after Lorenzo Sonego overcame Denis Shapovalov 7-6(4) 6-7(5) 6-4 in a marathon encounter.
A doubles match with Auger-Aliassime and Vasek Pospisil taking on Matteo Berrettini and Fabio Fognini will decide which country reaches Sunday’s final against Australia on Sunday.
World number six Auger-Aliassime had few issues against Musetti, never facing a break and winning all but three of his first-serve points, as he converted a chance late in both sets to get the 2019 finalists on the board in Malaga, Spain.
Sonego made a sluggish start but battled back from an early break down after finding his groove on serve again to capture the opening set in the tiebreak when an error-prone Shapovalov sent a forehand long.
World number 45 Sonego, who lost in three sets to Shapovalov when the pair last met in Rome earlier this year, saved five set points to hold for 5-5 and took the second set into a tiebreak, but spurned several opportunities to close out the contest.
With the match crossing the three-hour mark, Sonego switched on the after-burners to grab a decisive break in the final game and send the Italian fans in the crowd wild.
On Friday, Australia reached the final for the first time in 19 years with a 2-1 win over Croatia. (Reporting by Shrivathsa Sridhar in Bengaluru and Amy Tennery in New York, editing by Pritha Sarkar and Ken Ferris)
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