Guccione leads Australia to victory

Chris Guccione's victory in the final reverse singles rubber gave Australia a 3-2 win over Switzerland in their Davis Cup World Group first round tie yesterday.

Guccione beat George Bastl 7-5 6-3 7-6 after Swiss Stanislas Wawrinka had kept the hosts, minus world number one Roger Federer, in the running with a win over Peter Luczak to level the score at 2-2.

Swiss captain Severin Luthi decided late on Saturday to substitute world number 137 Bastl for Michael Lammer, who lost his Friday match against Luczak.

Wawrinka, showing little signs of tiring on his third straight day on the indoor clay, overpowered his Australian rival 6-4 6-2 6-7 6-2 at the Palexpo Arena.

It was the second singles success of the weekend for the 20-year-old who led the home fans' hopes in the absence of Federer.

Australia were also missing their top player with Lleyton Hewitt nursing a sore ankle.

Reacting to Swiss media criticism of Federer for not supporting his national team in the tie, Wawrinka said the player was entitled to a break.

"With all that he has already done for Switzerland it's a bit too easy to criticise him for not being here," Wawrinka said.

He added that he had spoken with and exchanged text messages with Federer over the weekend.

Australia, champions 28 times, have now beaten Switzerland in each of their four Davis Cup tussles.

Meanwhile, Spain's newly-appointed captain Emilio Sanchez Vicario said there was no point looking for excuses after his team lost 4-1 to Belarus in the first round.

"It was a very efficient victory for Belarus," Sanchez Vicario said. "They were sharper and more competitive at the crucial moments in the tie."

Winners in 2000 and 2004, Spain also lost in the first round to Slovakia last year and continue to struggle on the quicker hard courts when they play away ties in the competition.

World Group

Austria vs Croatia 2-3; Argentina vs Sweden 5-0; Belarus vs Spain 4-1; Switzerland vs Australia 2-3; Germany vs France 2-3; Netherlands vs Russia 0-5; United States vs Romania 3-1; Chile vs Slovakia 4-0.