Dan Evans, a member of Britain’s 2015 Davis Cup winning squad, said on Tennis Channel: “I have to be honest, I thought the British guys together as a team were pretty poor. They were not as one out there.
“They were not bouncing off each other, not helping each other enough, and the Polish team were a better team.”
Cash and Glasspool started the match well but, with the crowd against them, momentum shifted and they struggled to get back on track.
The Britons earned a break point early in the first set but the Poles recovered to hold serve until the sixth game when the British pair wore them down.
A nervy service game from Glasspool while attempting to serve out required the British team to save break-back points before a powerful serve secured the set at the second opportunity.
However, a couple of flat games from the Britons in the second set allowed Poland to capitalise and Cash double-faulted at break point in the sixth game to gift the Poles the advantage.
Cash and Glasspool were suddenly littering their performance with errors as Drzewiecki and Zielinski took advantage of the home support and sealed the second set.
There was little resistance from the British pair, who were perhaps feeling the pressure of playing for their country for the first time. They have also played a significant volume of tennis this year which has included historic wins at Queen’s and then Wimbledon but also a shock first-round exit at the US Open.
They appeared rejuvenated in the deciding set, dropping just two points in six games on serve, but could not find the breakthrough and a tense tie-break followed.
The Polish players won four points in a row to take control, steaming ahead to earn three match points before the British pair threatened to turns things around.
They saved three match points to level at 6-6 but could not complete the rescue effort as a sizzling lob followed by a powerful first serve from Drzewiecki clinched a dramatic victory and put Poland’s first point on the board.
An emotional Zielinski said on court: “It’s an amazing feeling. This is one of my biggest victories. Playing with a Polish flag on my chest, together with one of my best friends, with my captain and my coach on the bench, it’s special.”
