Hewitt and Groth steer Australia into semis with comeback win over Kazakhstan

Lleyton Hewitt added another chapter to his illustrious Davis Cup career after guiding Australia through to the semi-finals with a victory over Kazakhstan's Aleksandr Nedovyesov in the deciding rubber in Darwin.

Hewitt, a late replacement for his young team-mate Thanasi Kokkinakis, triumphed in straight sets over world 115 Nedovyesov 7-6 (7-2), 6-2, 6-3, giving Australia a 3-2 win in the quarter-final tie.

The 34-year-old Hewitt, who made his Davis Cup debut in 1999, won his 42nd Davis Cup singles rubber with his victory over Nedovyesov.

Australia will play the winner of the Great Britain versus France quarter-final in an away semi-final to be contested in September.

Earlier, Sam Groth, deputising for the dropped Nick Kyrgios, had levelled the tie for Australia at 2-2 when he beat Kazakhstan number one Mikhail Kukushkin in four sets 6-3, 7-6 (8-6), 4-6, 7-6 (8-6).

Groth and Hewitt had teamed up on Saturday to win the doubles rubber after Australia had lost the opening two singles matches on Friday with Kokkinakis and Kyrgios both going down.

The big-serving Groth seemed headed for a straight sets win on Sunday before being forced to fight for a four-set result.

He won all 18 points on first serve in the opening set, while he took advantage of his only break opportunity while staving off four break points himself.

His serve took him through the second set, avoiding any breaks and winning the tie-break 8-6 to rouse the vocal home crowd.

The turning point came when he was broken in the ninth game of the third set to go 4-5 down, and Kukushkin held to cut the deficit to two sets to one.

The fourth set went to a tie-break, and although Groth made an error to go a mini-break down at 2-2, he levelled at 3-3.

Both players showed nerves as the tie-breaker continued, but finally it was Groth who prevailed, as his deep approach shot brought a return from Kukushkin that floated wide to end the match after two hours and 51 minutes.

He served 29 aces for the match against five for his opponent.

Asked what coach Wally Masur said before the match, Groth said: "Just having confidence in my own game, if I played the way I can play, particularly on grass on day three on a court that's breaking up ... thankfully it worked."

Kyrgios, ranked 41st in the world, was disappointing against Nedovyesov in the second rubber of the tie, losing in four sets 6-7 (7-5), 7-6 (7-2), 6-7 (7-5), 6-4 on Friday.

He has been at the centre of controversy, with suggestions of "tanking" in his quarter-final appearance at Wimbledon.

At the Davis Cup on Friday he looked disengaged and distracted, and was unable to break Nedovyesov in crucial points.

Great Britain leads France 2-1 ahead of the reverse singles rubbers on the final day of the tie on London.