Goffin wins last singles as Belgium beats Switzerland 3-2
LIEGE, Belgium (AP) David Goffin shook off a back injury to beat Adrien Bossel 6-4, 6-0, 6-4 and lead Belgium into the Davis Cup quarterfinals with a 3-2 win over defending champion Switzerland on Sunday.
The 21st-ranked Goffin had withdrawn from Friday's singles but recovered to face No. 321 Bossel. Ruben Bemelmans had initially been scheduled to play for Belgium against Michael Lammer, a player ranked outside the top 500.
Goffin made light work of the contest, hitting 15 aces, breaking Bossel's serve five times and saving both break-points he faced.
Belgium next faces either Canada or Japan in the quarters. They resumed their first-round contest later Sunday, with Canada 2-1 up.
Earlier, unheralded Henri Laaksonen kept alive Switzerland's chances after he rallied to beat Belgium's Steve Darcis 6-3, 3-6, 3-6, 7-6 (5), 6-1 to level the match at 2-2.
Laaksonen, ranked 344th, was a break down at the start of the fourth set before beating the 102nd-ranked Darcis in a match featuring 18 breaks of serve.
Switzerland missed both its two stars.
Roger Federer, the 17-time Grand Slam champion, and former Australian Open winner Stanislas Wawrinka skipped the first-round series after leading their country to its first title in 2014.
