SANTIAGO, Chile — Andy Roddick showed why he's the go-to guy when the United States needs to close out a Davis Cup tie.
Roddick defeated Paul Capdeville 3-6, 7-6 (2), 6-3, 6-3 Sunday, giving the United States an insurmountable 3-1 lead in its 4-1 victory over Chile in the first-round Davis Cup World Group series.
Roddick improved 12-0 in matches that can clinch a Davis Cup matchup for the U.S. and is 33-11 overall in 24 ties since 2001.
"It's always sweet, and every time you clinch one you think it's the sweetest," Roddick said. "I think it's also pretty satisfactory when everything is stacked against you – you got the [clay] court, the crowd. It's a mental grind and you have to try and ignore everything."
John Isner finished off the 4-1 victory with a 6-3, 6-7 (4), 7-5 win over Guillermo Rivera-Aranguiz in the meaningless second reverse singles. It was Isner's first win in four Davis Cup singles matches. He has two wins in doubles.
The victory was the first for new U.S. Davis Cup captain Jim Courier, who played on the 1992 and 1995 winning Davis Cup squads.
"I like the way all of our guys responded to adversity out there," he said. "John's match was a very important match for us as a team to have him go out there and battle through and have him win in singles."