OSTRAVA, Czech Republic (AP)—Tomas Berdych and Radek Stepanek won the doubles for the defending champion Czech Republic to take a 2-1 lead over the Netherlands in the Davis Cup first round on Saturday.
The Czechs defeated Robin Haase and Jean-Julien Rojer 7-5, 1-6, 7-6 (2), 7-6 (4) in almost four hours on an indoor hard court at CEZ Arena to improve to a 15-1 record in the cup doubles.
The Czechs converted their second match point in the tiebreaker with Haase sending a volley too long.
The Czechs, seeking their third straight Davis Cup title are one win away from the quarterfinals while the Dutch must win both reverse singles on Sunday to reach the quarters for the first time since 2005.
On Sunday, Berdych plays Haase then Stepanek faces Igor Sijsling.