Spain won its fourth Davis Cup title Saturday when Fernando Verdasco and Feliciano Lopez took the doubles to give the team an unassailable 3-0 lead over the Czech Republic. Rafael Nadal and David Ferrer completed Spain's Davis Cup whitewash over the Czech Republic here Sunday. Defending champion Spain had sealed their fourth Davis Cup title on Saturday when the doubles pair of Fernando Verdasco and Feliciano Lopez demolished their Czech opponents to give the hosts an unassailable 3-0 lead. And world No. 2 Nadal and Ferrer completed the job on Sunday by beating Jan Hajek and Lukas Dlouhy respectively for a final 5-0 scoreline for the hosts. Nadal downed Jan Hajek 6-3, 6-4 while Ferrer cruised to a 6-4, 6-2 victory over Dlouhy. Spain becomes the first country since Sweden in 1998 to retain the Davis Cup, after triumphing last year in Argentina. “It was an incredible moment to return as captain after winning here nine years ago,” said Spanish team captain Albert Costa, who as a player helped Spain to its first ever Davis Cup title in 2000, beating Australia at the same Palau Sant Jordi Arena in Barcelona. Spain won again in 2004, defeating the USA. On Saturday, Verdasco and Lopez overwhelmed an exhausted Stepanek and Tomas Berdych – who had lost both Friday's opening singles – 7-6 (9-7), 7-5, 6-2, in what was the Czech pair's first ever Davis Cup defeat in six matches. In Friday's opening singles, Nadal, who had limped out of last week's ATP World Tour finals in London without a single win, cruised past Berdych 7-5, 6-0, 6-2. Then Ferrer, ranked 18, came back from two sets down to beat Stepanek 1-6, 2-6, 6-4, 6-4, 8-6 in an epic match that lasted four hours and 17 minutes. The Czechs won their only Davis Cup title as Czechoslovakia with Ivan Lendl in their squad in 1980. Henin triumphs again Belgium's former world No. 1 Justine Henin began her return to tennis after an 18-month absence with victory over Italy's Flavia Pennetta in the Women Tennis Trophy in Charleroi, Belgium,Sunday. And the 27-year-old is already dreaming of winning an elusive women's crown at Wimbledon. “It is another Justine Henin who will try and go out there and achieve her dream of finally winning Wimbledon,” Henin said. “I don't know if it's possible but that just makes it an even more passionate challenge for me.” Having beaten compatriot Kirsten Flipkens in the semifinal of this exhibition event on Saturday, Henin defeated Pennetta, currently 12th in the WTA rankings, 6-4, 6-4 to win the trophy. Although not part of the official circuit, the victory will have given Henin the belief she can once more compete at the top level. The 27-year-old Belgian announced her retirement from top-level tennis in May 2008 after winning seven Grand Slam titles and spending a total of 117 weeks at the top of the women's rankings. Only months earlier, fellow Belgian Kim Clijsters made a stunning return to the sport by winning the US Open after a two-year absence to start a family. Henin is due to make her official return to the WTA circuit in the Brisbane tournament that starts on January 3 next year, 15 days before the Australian Open in Melbourne. She added: “To be honest, I don't have any big expectations as regards results in Australia. “But I will be delighted just to return to the country again, I love it there, and to the official circuit.”
