Tennis Roundup : Flach, Seguso Clinch Davis Cup Victory for U.S.

Ken Flach and Robert Seguso, who have never lost a doubles match in Davis Cup competition, defeated Peru’s Jaime Yzaga and Carlos Di Laura, 6-2, 4-6, 6-4, 6-3, Sunday to clinch a Davis Cup victory for the United States in the American Zone Group I semifinals at Lima, Peru.

With an insurmountable 3-0 lead in the best-of-five competition, the Americans advance to the zonal final where they will play in Argentina July 22-24.

That winner returns to the World Group next year where 16 nations compete for the trophy.

Despite a marathon first singles match Friday, the U.S. victory was not threatened from the opening moments of the three-day competition.

Jay Berger beat Peru’s Pablo Arraya, 7-5, 6-1, 5-7, 1-6, 7-5, in an opening match that lasted 5 hours 45 minutes. It was the weekend’s toughest match.

A following match between Andre Agassi and Yzaga was suspended due to darkness with the first set tied 5-5. Yzaga came back to win the set, 7-5, on Saturday.

But after that shaky start, Agassi regained his composure, showing broad court mobility and generally outplaying the Peruvian. Agassi won the match, 6-8, 7-5, 6-1, 6-2.

Two reverse singles, originally scheduled for Sunday, were canceled after the United States clinched the victory.

Flach and Seguso showed speed and agility at the net to keep Yzaga and Di Laura off balance.

Though the Americans appeared nervous in the opening moments, they quickly dispatched Yzaga and Di Laura in the first set.

In the second set, they had a 4-1 lead but then appeared to lose their on-court coordination, giving Yzaga and Di Laura the opening they needed.

But in the next two sets, the aggressive U.S. team forced Yzaga into several service return errors.

Top-seeded Martina Navratilova defeated second-seeded Gabriela Sabatini, 6-1, 4-6, 6-4, at Hilton Head Island, S.C., to win the $300,000 Family Circle Magazine Cup tournament.

It was the third Family Circle title for Navratilova but her first since winning the second of two consecutive titles in 1983--the last time she had played here.

“I think I wasn’t expected to win,” Navratilova said after winning her first clay court tournament since 1985. “Gaby probably thought she was going to win. But I always play my best tennis in the finals.”

Navratilova took home $60,000 for defeating the 17-year-old from Argentina.

“I don’t feel I played as well as the times I’ve beaten her,” said Sabatini, who is 2-8 against Navratilova. “My serve, I think, was the biggest problem.”

“At 3-2 (in the third set) I thought I had a chance to win, but I think my serve was very bad,” Sabatini said.

Second-seeded Tim Mayotte won his second consecutive $315,000 Volvo of Chicago championship, defeating Paul Annacone, 6-1, 6-3.

Mayotte, who won $75,000, said he wanted to make sure he didn’t let up after easily winning the first set.

“In two matches during the week, I had a similar situation where I won easy first sets and then dropped the break early in the second,” Mayotte said. “I wanted to avoid that today.”

Earlier in the week, the eighth-seeded Annacone had upset top-seeded Jimmy Connors and third-seeded Brad Gilbert to reach the final.

Sunday’s play was “probably the worst nightmare--to go out and play a final like that,” Annacone said.

But he said he was worn out after playing in both singles and doubles’ matches that didn’t end until around 11 p.m. most of the week. “As the week went on, I felt progressively more tired,” Annacone said.

“Against someone like Tim, you really have to play 100%. . . . I kind of dug myself a hole. . . . I didn’t even hit the ball well.”

Sunday’s victory was the fifth for Mayotte in his last six indoor tournaments.