Marin Cilic has won the Davis Cup for Croatia by defeating France’s Lucas Pouille 7-6 (7-3) 6-3 6-3 to give his country an unassailable 3-1 win at the Stade Pierre-Mauroy in Lille.
The first set on French clay was close but after Cilic claimed the tiebreak, he broke Pouille in the second set to take a 2-0 lead and give his rival a tall task to rescue the defending champions on Sunday.
Cilic broke twice in the third set as Pouille collapsed through errors and the victory for Croatia was confirmed with a sensational lob after 2 hours and 19 minutes.
It is Croatia’s second Davis Cup title after their 3-2 triumph over Slovakia in 2005.