Carlos Moya belied his underdog status to defeat Mark Philippoussis and draw Spain level in the Davis Cup final overnight. Moya's 6-4 6-4 4-6 7-6 victory makes the tie 1-1 after Lleyton Hewitt had earlier given Australia the lead.
Former world number one Hewitt twice came from a set behind for a stunning five-set win over Juan Carlos Ferrero. Hewitt, who has dropped to 16th in the rankings, said: "It's good to come out with a win. It was a tough match. I gave everything I had in the tank."
Moya, a claycourt specialist, last played on grass at Wimbledon in 2000 but he successfully adopted a serve and volley approach to overcome Australia's number one. "It's a good win for me, I was fighting a lot and was very focussed," said Moya.
Hewitt, who had not played a competitive match for two months, struggled with his form in the early part of a topsy-turvy contest. And his array of unforced errors seemingly paved the way for a comfortable victory for Ferrero, who moved two sets to one clear.
But the Spaniard, who had bounced back from a break down in the fourth set, lost his nerve in the tie-break and Hewitt seized his chance, winning it to love.
From there, Ferrero's challenge faltered as a pumped-up Hewitt played up to the crowd with an inspired selection of ground strokes after four hours of play. Hewitt added: "I played a flawless tie-break and then my best tennis of the match in the fifth set."
World number three Ferrero, best known as a clay-court player, said he had found it difficult to get used to the specially-laid grass court. "The ball was bouncing in a funny way. There were holes or uneven levels on the surface and it was rather dry," he said.
Filed by Mark O'Neill-Cummins
