Chris Rodesch and Luxembourg Edged in Davis Cup Tie

BOGOTA, Colombia – Virginia men’s tennis senior Chris Rodesch competed in the Davis Cup World Group I Playoff between his native Luxembourg and host Colombia Feb. 2-3 at the Club Bellavista Colsubsidio, Bogota, Colombia

Top-seeded Colombia won the tie 3-2.

Rodesch opened play with a 7-6 (3), 6-3 singles victory against Nicolas Mejia. Florida State alum Alex Knaff followed with another singles victory on the first day of play to put Luxembourg ahead 2-0.

On Saturday, Rodesch and Knaff dropped a three-set doubles match for Colombia’s first point. After Knaff lost in singles, Rodesch took the court with the tie knotted 2-2. He faced Miami alum Adria Soriano Barrera with the latter pulling off a 6-3, 7-6 (5) victory to seal the win for the host nation.

Rodesch has been a member of Luxembourg’s Davis Cup team since 2019, helping his home nation rise from World Group III to this appearance in World Group I. He has an 8-6 record in singles and 5-4 in doubles.

The 12 winning nations from the 2024 World Group I Play-offs will play a World Group I tie in September. The Luxembourg and the 11 other losing nations will contest a World Group II tie in September.

In other Davis Cup action, UVA alum Alexander Ritschard and his Switzerland team were in action in qualifiers, falling 3-2 to the Netherlands. Ritschard did not compete in the tie. It was his fifth nomination to the team.