A “heartbroken” Carlos Alcaraz was forced to withdraw from Spain’s squad on Tuesday after the new world number one was advised to rest due to swelling in his right hamstring.
Without their star player, Spain’s campaign began uncertainly as big-serving Jakub Mensik, firing 20 aces, powered past Pablo Carreno Busta 7-5, 6-4.
But world number 36 Jaume Munar stepped up, securing his first-ever Davis Cup singles win with a commanding 6-3, 6-4 performance against world number 17 and US Open quarter-finalist Jiri Lehecka, sending the tie to a decisive doubles match.
Czech captain Tomas Berdych brought Mensik back for the doubles, but the strategy failed as he and Tomas Machac—both singles specialists—fell in two tight tie-breaks, 7-6 (10-8), 7-6 (10-8), to the Spanish duo of Marcel Granollers and Pedro Martinez.
The Czech team was left to regret several missed chances in the two-hour battle. They led 4-1 and held three set points in the first-set tie-break, then squandered two more set-point opportunities in the second.
Former doubles world number one Granollers said: “We are really happy that we fought hard for all of the team. We believed, and here we are in the semi-finals.
“Last year was difficult for us, but we know this competition is very tough. You can see how strong the teams are here. We have a young team, but we are still alive.”
Spain has not advanced to the semi-finals of the Davis Cup Finals since their title-winning run in 2019.