Magic Mrva leads Czechia to Davis Cup Juniors crown
Czechia continued their recent dominance of international junior team competition after they were crowned 2023 Davis Cup Juniors champions with victory over Italy at the 16-and-under event in Cordoba on Sunday.
The Czechs, who also won both the boys’ and girls’ under-14 events at the 2023 ITF World Junior Tennis Finals in August, added a fourth junior Davis Cup crown to their collection – and first since 2017 – after coming back from the brink in the final.
Boys’ world No. 35 Maxim Mrva was the star of the day for Czechia.
Italy had looked on course to win their first Junior Davis Cup title since 2012 when Andrea De Marchi beat Jan Kumstat 6-4 7-6(5) and Federico Cina took the opening set against Mrva, but the 16-year-old flipped the script.
He fought back to beat junior world No. 10 Cina 3-6 6-3 6-2 before combining with Kumstat to defeat the Italian pair 6-4 6-4 in the decider.
“It’s an amazing feeling. I cannot even describe it,” said Mrva, who tumbled to the clay and later let out an ear-splitting cry of ‘Vamos’ in celebration. “We are so happy. We were a [strong] team from the beginning. We believed in ourselves. And that’s the most important thing.”
Re-watch the final here
Czech captain Josef Cihak was similarly delighted following a week in which they saw off Morocco, Brazil and Netherlands during the round-robin stages without losing a match.
“I’m very happy. The guys played very good,” said Cihak, who believes the competition is a crucial stepping stone for these young players for the future.
“It’s very important because it’s the second biggest [team] competition after Davis Cup for older players. It’s important for the future that they can believe that they’re on the right [path].”
The Czechs could well achieve a cleansweep of junior team titles this year at the Billie Jean King Cup Junior event, which follows in Cordoba this week and sees their girls team look for a sixth title, having last triumphed in 2021.
The Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup Junior events continue what is proving a memorable November in the region of Andalucia.
The elite-level Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge Finals is taking place at the same time as next week's girls' event in nearby Seville, while the Davis Cup Final 8 follows in Malaga on 21-26 November.