Ivo Karlovic teamed up with Ivan Dodig to win the doubles as 2005 champions Croatia took a 2-1 lead over Japan in their Davis Cup tennis World Group first-round tie on Saturday.

The country’s No.3 and No.4 coasted to a 6-4 6-4 3-6 6-3 victory over Tatsuma Ito and Yuichi Sugita on the indoor hardcourt in the western Japanese city of Miki.

On Friday, Japanese No.2 Go Soeda caused a stir when he stormed back from two sets down to beat Dodig 6-7 (3-7) 3-6 6-4 6-3 7-5 in an opener that lasted four hours and five minutes.

But Karlovic came to his side’s rescue, firing down 18 aces on his way to a straightforward 6-4 6-4 6-3 victory over Australian Open quarter-finalist Kei Nishikori.