TENNIS in DEPTH.

Colombian No. 2 Santiago Giraldo overturned a 40-place ranking difference to score a vital 62 64 75 win over World No. 21 Sam Querrey. The win draws Colombia level with USA 1-1 after the first day of its BNP Paribas World Group play-off tie in Bogota. Earlier American Mardy Fish made his first Davis Cup by BNP Paribas appearance since the 2009 quarterfinals worth waiting for by defeating Colombia’s Alejandro Falla 46 61 64 36 64 in Bogota.

It was not pretty tennis, but at an altitude of over 8,000 feet, it never promised to be. With seven breaks of serve in the first set, it looked as if neither Mardy Fish nor Alejandro Falla could hold a loaf of bread without dropping it. There were more errors than winners and a combination of pressure-less balls and tight hands contributed to a mountain of unforced errors on both sides.

Tied at three games each, Fish dropped serve for the third time and sent his racket flying and team USA’s personal stringer scrambling to get the racket’s tension right. Finally, it was Falla who managed to hold his nerves and serve and it was now Colombia who took the first set 64.

On a bright sunny day, the Plaza de Toros in Bogota was draped in the tricolor of the Colombian flag; yellow, red and blue. Even the potted carnations that ringed the court were red and yellow. The crowd sang chants of, “Vamos Alejo.Vamos Alejo. Vamos Alejo.”

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