Norrie & Fery put GB in control in Davis Cup tie
Great Britain took a big step towards next year's Davis Cup qualifiers as Cameron Norrie and Arthur Fery both won to give them a 2-0 lead over Poland.
World number 34 Norrie survived a scare against world number 545 Tomasz Berkieta to win his nation's opening World Group 1 match 7-6 (11-9) 6-4 in Gdynia, Poland.
Fery, ranked 227 in the world, then battled to a 6-4 6-2 victory over Olaf Pieczkowski.
The 23-year-old was making an unexpected Davis Cup debut after British number three Jacob Fearnley pulled out with a rib injury.
Britain need one more win on Saturday to reach February's first round and therefore have a shot at winning the title in 2026.
The world's number one doubles pair, Lloyd Glasspool and Julian Cash, will make their debut in Saturday's doubles, which will be followed by two reverse singles.
Britain lost 3-2 in Japan in the first round of this year's Davis Cup, and so must win this tie to maintain their status among the elite. Defeat would mean a February play-off, which could result in relegation to World Group 2.
World number seven Jack Draper was unavailable for the tie because of an arm injury which has ruled him out of the remainder of the season.
'Proud' Fery impresses on debut
Fery's call up to replace the injured Fearnley came just 24 hours before he stepped out on court to make his Davis Cup debut.
But there were no signs of nerves from the Briton as he produced a mature display against Pieczkowski, ranked 484 in the world.
"I didn't really think it [a debut] was going to be this early on in my career, and with my ranking," Fery, whose mum flew in from London just in time for the match, said.
"Very, very proud to be playing for Great Britain, and hopefully I can do it for many years to come."
Fery had the better of his 21-year-old opponent in the clutch moments, converting four of his 11 break points and minimising his errors, despite some signs of fatigue.
Injury had caused him to drop out of the top 400 in the world but a monumental win over top-50 player Alexei Popyrin at Wimbledon and a first title on the Challenger tour – the rung below the ATP tour – helped him climb the rankings.
"I've managed to play well, when I've been on court," he said. "I've struggled with injuries the past year and a half, but this year has been good when I have been able to play."
Norrie had put Britain's first point on the board earlier on Friday but was made to work for his victory over 19-year-old Berkieta, ranked 511 places below him.
The British number two was immediately on the back foot, saving two break points in his opening service game before saving set points in a tense tie-break then sealing the set with a pinpoint serve.
The 30-year-old then showed his experience as his opponent ran out of steam and an early break of serve was enough for Norrie to see out the win.
