Breakers dealt Capital punishment

The Newport Beach Breakers dug themselves a hole they couldn’t get out of. Not without their horse.

The Breakers, competing without Ramon Delgado, whom Coach Dick Leach calls the team’s workhorse, dropped their first two sets and couldn’t come all the way back in a 20-17 overtime loss to the Sacramento Capitals Thursday night at Palisades Tennis Club.

It marked the second consecutive night Sacramento has gotten the best of the Breakers. The Capitals posted a 20-17 home win Wednesday.

The one bright spot for the Breakers was Alex Kuznetsov. The 19-year-old Russian was a late replacement for Delgado, who suffered a foot injury Tuesday and did not make the trip to Sacramento on Wednesday.

Leach was hoping Delgado was going to be ready for Thursday’s match, but his foot was still bothering him.

Kuznetsov was practicing at Home Depot Center on Thursday, preparing for an ATP Challenger Series event in Aptos, Calif. this weekend, when he got the call to make his World Team Tennis debut.

“I was a little shocked,” Kuznetsov said. “But my coach suggested that I do it. He said it was a good opportunity and it turned out to be a lot of fun.”

The Breakers trailed, 10-4, after mixed doubles and women’s doubles, before Kuznetsov saw the court.

But he quickly made his presence felt, teaming with Rick Leach to defeat longtime doubles star Mark Knowles and Sam Warburg, 5-3, to pull the Breakers within 13-9. Leach’s volley gave the Breakers a 4-3 lead, then the Breakers duo broke Sacramento’s serve to take the set, 5-3.

“To beat Knowles, one of the greatest doubles players of all time, was a great experience,” Kuznetsov said.

The Breakers had an even bigger hole to dig out of when Anastassia Rodionova fell to Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova, 5-2, in women’s singles.

Pavlyuchenkova, who celebrated her 15th birthday earlier this month by capturing the Wimbledon girls’ doubles championship with partner Alisa Kleybanova, broke Rodionova twice on the way to a 5-2 triumph. It was payback for Pavlyuchenkova, who lost to Rodionova, 5-4, Wednesday.

In the last regulation set of the night, Kuznetsov defeated Warburg, 5-1, to pull the Breakers to within 19-16. Kuznetsov broke Warburg twice in the set, including the last game, when he nailed a blistering return off a Warburg serve to clinch the set.

Kuznetsov’s victory forced overtime. Kuznetsov needed to win three straight games to force a super-tiebreaker. But, after holding serve, he couldn’t manage to break Warburg, who rolled off four straight points to clinch the game and the match for Sacramento (4-2).

“[Kuznetsov] is a lot better than I thought he was,” said Dick Leach, whose team fell to 2-4. “He’s got some game. We were lucky to get him.”

Kuznetsov won’t be available, so the Breakers could really use Delgado Saturday night at home against the New York Buzz.

dpt-breakers.BGraphicInfoNL1SUAA220060714NL1SUAA2Credit: Caption: (LA) dpt.14-wtt-4-BPhotoInfoNL1SUA5A20060714j2dk0jncCredit: MARK DUSTIN / DAILY PILOT Caption: (LA)Newport Beach Breakers’ Tina Krizan makes forehand volley during women’s doubles mach against visiting Sacramento. dpt.14-wtt-2-BPhotoInfoNL1SUAD320060714j2djzyncCredit: MARK DUSTIN / DAILY PILOT Caption: (LA)Newport Beach Breakers’ Rick Leach focuses on the ball as he makes a backhand return during mixed doubles play Thursday.