It took two replacement players, including Davis Cup stalwart Lleyton Hewitt, to help restore some pride to Australian tennis.
Facing a 2-0 deficit after dropping the opening singles matches on Friday, Australia came back to win its Davis Cup quarterfinal on grass in the tropical northern city of Darwin on Sunday when Sam Groth and Hewitt won their matches in the reverse singles.
Hewitt clinched the quarterfinal with a stirring 7-6 (2), 6-2, 6-3 win over Aleksandr Nedovyesov. He fell to his back when Nedovyesov's forehand went long and teammates Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis — who were both replaced in the reverse singles after losing their matches Friday — ran onto the court to hug Hewitt before he went to the net to shake hands with his Kazakh opponent.