Korea, Finland make history as they qualify for Davis Cup Finals
The 12 qualified teams will join last year’s winners, runners-up and wildcards Spain and Italy in the group stages of the Finals in September
Korea and Finland will be mixing it with the big boys later this year after they won through to the 16-nation Davis Cup finals later this year.
Korea produced a major shock as they upended Belgium 3-2 in a qualifying tie while Finland upset Argentina 3-1 to qualify for the group stages of the Finals, which will be played in September, for the first time.
Soonwoo Kwon’s three-set win over David Goffin was the key while Seong-chan Hong beat Zizou Bergs to seal victory for the Koreans over the No 8 seeds.
Great Britain, France (who edged past Hungary 3-2), Serbia, Sweden, Switzerland and USA secured their spots with wins on Saturday.
The Netherlands, Chile, Croatia and Czech Republic completed the 12 qualifiers from the weekend. They join holders Canada, runners-up Australia and wildcards Italy and Spain in the 16-nation Finals.
The group stage will be played across four venues from September 12 to 17, while the top eight teams will compere in the Final 8 in Malaga from November 21 to 26.