Fernando Gonzalez dedicated his first round of Davis Cup to his country Chile. The victory over Israel to his battered countrymen, saying that he hoped the win brought earthquake victims 'small happiness'. Gonzalez booked Chile’s place in the quarter-finals of the 2010 World Group with a 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 win over Dudi Sela to give the home nation an unbeatable 3-1 lead in the tie, which was delayed by one day due to the 8.8 magnitude earthquake that devastated the country.
Gonzalez, who had mixed feelings about the tie taking place, said, “The important thing was to win, whichever the way. We are very happy with this victory, and we hope it is something to get happy about, even if it’s small happiness, for all the people affected by the earthquake.”
Chile will play its quarter-final on home soil against 2009 finalist, the Czech Republic, from 9-11 July. “It’s going to be really tough," he said. "I know them very well, it’s a team I respect very much and it will be not easy to face them. But if we all are well, we may beat them."
Gonzalez has withdrawn from the BNP Paribas Open, the ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament that begins Thursday in Indian Wells, to take time to tour areas of Chile affected by the earthquake. He also has been leading calls for international donations to assist in the relief effort.
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