Van de Zandschulp beat Rafael Nadal in his final career match earlier this week and looked to ride that momentum into the last four.

The Dutchman took the first set fairly comfortably before a fightback from the German saw the pair head into a second-set tiebreak.

It lasted 30 points, just a few shy of Ben Shelton and Thanasi Kokkinakis’ record-breaking tiebreak on Thursday.

Altmaier eventually took the match to a decider, but not before saving five match points, one of which could well be ‘shot of the week’.

Tennis fans stunned by Daniel Altmaier’s match point save against Botic van de Zandschulp

Down match point against Van de Zandschulp, Altmaier produced a stunning shot to keep himself in the match.

Many fans took to X to share their amazement at the match point save.

“Altmaier did it again. Doing crazy things,” one fan said.

Another fan praised the German.

“Altmaier is so talented, just hope he puts it all together,” they said.

One fan couldn’t quite believe what they had seen: “That first match point save from Altmaier was ridiculous.”

“What a set of tennis for Atlmaier, literally wow,” another said.

Several other fans couldn’t help but praise the German 26-year-old who saved five match points en route to winning the second set.

“What a fightback this was from Altmaier, played some awesome volleys in that tiebreak,” they said.

“Not sure how Altmaier is in the match, but may spoil the Dutch party,” added another.

“Respect Altmaier,” said one fan.

The deciding set was full of even more drama, as Van de Zandschulp needed a handful more match points before getting over the line 6-4 6-7 (12-14), 6-3.

The Netherlands one win away from their first-ever Davis Cup final

Van de Zandschulp’s perfect week continued with a win against Altmaier that has left the Dutch one win away from the final.

Jan Lennard Struff will now take on Tallon Griekspoor, in the second singles tie, with the potential for a doubles decider later on Friday evening.

If the Dutch could get it done, they would reach the final for the first time in the nation’s history.

After falling at the quarter-final stage twice in the last two seasons, the Netherlands have already matched their best ever result at the Davis Cup, but will be hoping to go one better and reach Sunday’s final.

The winner of Italy and Australia would await in the final, either the defending champions or the second most successful nation in the history of the competition, a fairly tough proposition for the Dutch side.

Related Posts