A spectacular day’s journey into night for Team World

Team World closed Saturday night with a commanding 9-3 lead on the Laver Cup leaderboard after sweeping all three singles matches and the doubles.

Channelling the contrasting styles of their legendary captains—Andre Agassi, the relentless baseliner, and Patrick Rafter, the fearless serve-volleyer—Team World put themselves within striking distance of claiming the Laver Cup trophy. With each match on Sunday worth three points, however, Team Europe can still mount a dramatic comeback. Under competition rules, the first team to 13 points wins the Laver Cup. That leaves Team World needing just two more victories, while Team Europe must win four.

Saturday’s dominance came after a shaky opening day, where only debutant João Fonseca had secured a point for Team World with his dazzling win over Flavio Cobolli. Determined to turn the tide, the red side sent out three singles players who each toppled higher-ranked opposition. No.8 Alex de Minaur set the tone with a stunning 6-1, 6-4 win over No.3 Alexander Zverev. No.21 Francisco Cerundolo built on the momentum by defeating No.11 Holger Rune before No.5 Taylor Fritz capped the session with the upset of the weekend—his first career victory over World No.1 Carlos Alcaraz.

The doubles added the exclamation mark. Teaming up for the first time, Alex de Minaur and rising star Alex Michelsen overpowered Casper Ruud and Rune in front of a partisan Chase Center crowd. The red-clad pair struck early with a break on Ruud’s serve, sealing the opening set. The moment of the night came when De Minaur caught his own racquet on his ear while blocking a Rune bullet—requiring a quick medical timeout—yet somehow still won the point.

With their captains Agassi and Rafter cheering animatedly from the sidelines, the Team World pair surged to victory 6-3, 6-4.

His left ear bandaged, De Minaur praised Michelsen’s doubles skills, and said he felt no pain. “It was a good day at the office, I’m glad we were able to get the win for Team World,” he said wearily. “Alex was unbelievable again today on the court. It was a pleasure to be by his side and watch him just dominate that court.”