Switzerland on brink of first Davis Cup title

LILLE, France -- Not a boisterous home crowd, not rested players, not even the front-row presence of President François Hollande could deliver what France needed Saturday at Stade Pierre Mauroy: A critical doubles point in the Davis Cup final against Switzerland.

Instead, their Gallic backs are against the wall with history, and a suddenly supple Roger Federer, staring them down.

Federer and Stan Wawrinka delivered that blow with a comprehensive 6-3, 7-5, 6-4 victory against duo Julien Benneteau and Richard Gasquet to give the Swiss a 2-1 lead.

They broke the Frenchmen once in each set and with each passing hand slap and encouraging "Allez" or "C'mon" rubbed out any lingering animosity from last week's competitive fracas in London.

"It's always a pleasure playing with Stan," said 17-time major winner Federer. "But I think today we played exceptionally well."

The table is now set for 33-year-old Federer to clinch his country's first Davis Cup championship Sunday in the opening reverse singles match against Jo-Wilfried Tsonga. Gael Monfils is likely to take on Wawrinka in what could be the deciding fifth rubber.

The French can pull off an historic comeback of their own.

"We have to do something big, very big," said French captain Arnaud Clement. "We still have a chance, and we're going to try as hard as possible."

But the odds are not in France's favor to claim its 10th Davis Cup title and first since 2001, if history is any guidance. When going into Saturday level at 1-1, the team taking the doubles point has won six of the last seven finals.

And only twice in the last 25 years has a team trailing 1-2 entering Sunday's singles matches prevailed. France was involved in both – losing to Serbia in Belgrade in 2010 and to Russia at home on indoor clay in Paris in 2002.

Swiss captain's Severin Luthi's decision to substitute Federer and Wawrinka for Saturday's doubles wasn't as simple as it seemed.

It would mean more work for his two singles players, and it might put Federer's back at risk.

But as long as Federer was improving – since pulling out of Sunday's ATP World Tour Finals it clearly was – most expected Luthi to tap Federer and Wawrinka over Thursday's announced doubles tandem Marco Chiudinelli and Michael Lammer.

More surprising was how well they played.

Although No. 2 Federer and No. 4 Wawrinka are top-five singles players and the 2008 Olympic champions, the tandem had lost their last four Davis Cup ties and had never won a match anywhere on clay. But they dominated Saturday.

Wawrinka, who beat Tsonga in four sets Friday, continued his torrid form of late by bombing serves and ripping forehand and backhand missiles from both wings.

With less court to cover, Federer, who lost in straight sets to Monfils the day before, dropped just eight points on serve and showed improved movement – on one poach arching high in the air to put away a backhand volley.

"We know that we are able, when we play well, to beat the top players," said Wawrinka.

Although Benneteau was broken in the first and third sets, Gasquet's suspect returning and erratic serving were the weaker links.

"I didn't play an exceptional match today and I'm disappointed," Gasquet said.

The turning point came in the second set when the French were unable to capitalize on any of their five break chances, four on Wawrinka's serve.

"It was tough to lose this second set because we had the feeling that we really could have won this one," said Benneteau, the French Open champion with Edouard Roger-Vasselin.

Perhaps the more peculiar decision was leaving Tsonga out of doubles. The Frenchman is 5-0 in Davis Cup play, including wins with Gasquet over tough Australian and Czech teams during their 2014 run to the finals.

Clement would not substantiate reports of a possible wrist issue.

"I can just say that Jo rested today for some reasons and there will be no problems tomorrow," Clement said.

While a 2-hour, 12-minute doubles match should not tax players of their caliber, Federer and Wawrinka will have logged more hours than their singles opponents Sunday. Whether that plays a role remains to be seen. Whether it will help or hurt Federer's recovery from a back injury is uncertain.

Federer was done discussing it.

"Honestly, it's like the last question I'll answer about my back now," he said. "I'm fine now."

France has come back from a 1-2 deficit to win just once in its Davis Cup history.

In 1927, the famous Four Musketeers of Jean Borotra, Jacques Brugnon, Henri Cochet and René Lacoste upended the Bill Tilden-led USA.

"We have to regroup, to make everything possible for tomorrow," said Benneteau. "Like this, tomorrow can be one of the most beautiful days of French tennis. We have to keep this spirit."