TENNIS/Taiwan to take on France in Davis Cup Finals qualifier

Taipei, Feb. 2 (CNA) Taiwan will take on France in a qualifying match in Taipei this weekend for the 2024 Davis Cup Finals, the farthest Taiwan has ever advanced in the international tennis competition.

The Davis Cup is described by organizers as the "World Cup of Tennis," and Taiwan will, for the first time, be among the 24 teams vying for a spot in the finals to be held in Spain in September.

The French will have world No. 17 Adrian Mannarino, who reached the fourth round of the men's singles at last month's Australian Open, and world No. 68 Luca Van Assche playing singles and veterans Nicolas Mahut and Edouard Roger-Vasselin playing doubles.

In the two singles matches on Saturday, the 19-year-old Van Assche will face Taiwan's top player, world No. 230 Hsu Yu-hsiou (許育修), followed by Mannarino playing Wu Tung-lin (吳東霖).

On Sunday, Hsu will pair with Taiwanese veteran Jason Jung (莊吉生) in the doubles against Mahut and Roger-Vasselin. Hsu and Wu will then play the final two singles matches for Taiwan, if necessary.

The team that wins three matches first will advance to the 2024 finals, where it will join the 2023 finalists (Australia and Italy) and the two wild cards (Great Britain and Spain) in a 16-nation line-up.

Facing with the task of having to play both singles and doubles and going against higher-ranked players, Hsu said he was physically ready for the challenge.

"We have beaten players ranked in the top 50 before, so it is not impossible," Hsu said, optimistic that playing at home will give him an advantage.

"I like to play in front of spectators, and I'm hoping to put on a good show," he said.

Jung, meanwhile, said he looked forward to the opportunity to perform in front of a home crowd.

"Playing against the French team is a big challenge, as you can tell by looking at their rankings," he said, but he said he would do his best to get a win in the doubles.

The tie is being held at the Taiwan Tennis Center starting at 1 p.m. on both Saturday and Sunday.

Tickets are being sold through the ibon ticketing system at 7-Eleven convenience stores, and as of Friday evening, some seats were still left for both the Saturday and Sunday sessions.

Tickets are NT$600 per day or NT$1,100 for a two-day pass.

Update

Feb. 4: Taiwan's Davis Cup journey ended by France

Feb. 3: Taiwan trails France in first day of Davis Cup Finals qualifier