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Australian victory pushes Switzerland out of Davis Cup

Switzerland is out of the Davis Cup tie in Zurich, after George Bastl and Roger Federer (pictured) lost their singles matches on Sunday. Australia narrowly squeezed into the second round with a 3-2 win.

Switzerland is out of the Davis Cup tie in Zurich, after George Bastl and Roger Federer lost their singles matches on Sunday. Australia narrowly squeezed into the second round with a 3-2 win, following strong performances by Lleyton Hewitt and Mark Philippoussis.

Bastl staged an impressive performance against Philippoussis on Sunday, winning the first set with a tie-break.

After losing the second, Bastl matched Australia’s star-player set for set, until Philippoussis’s stamina and strong serve finally delivered victory after five gruelling sets.

Roger Federer fell to Lleyton Hewitt in four sets, failing to repeat his excellent performance on Friday, when he triumphed over Philippoussis.

Until Sunday, a Swiss victory had seemed likely. On Saturday, Switzerland was leading Australia 2-1, following a doubles victory by Federer and Lorenzo Manta against Wayne Arthurs and Sandon Stolle.

From staff and wire reports

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