Inspired Belgium hunting history under 'Mr Davis Cup' Darcis

Steve Darcis will always be remembered as the man who stunned Rafa Nadal in the first round of Wimbledon in 2013 but Belgian tennis fans are more likely to think of him as 'Mr Davis Cup'.

The 41-year-old Darcis's Cup playing career spanned 12 years and he won 23 of his 35 singles rubbers, including the deciding match against Argentina in the 2015 semi-final.

He was also a key figure as Belgium punched above their weight again to reach the 2017 final which, as in 2015 against Britain, ended in defeat this time by France with Darcis suffering the agony of losing the deciding fifth rubber.

He is now Belgium's captain and his team are one step from another appearance in the final of the men's team competition after a win against France in the quarter-finals in Bologna on Tuesday.

While he cannot physically win any points, Darcis's presence on the court-side bench was a huge factor as Raphael Collignon and Zizou Bergs beat higher-ranked opponents for a 2-0 win.

"I think the bench helped me a lot," said Collignon, who came from a set down to beat Corentin Moutet on the opening day of the Final Eight in Bologna.

"My coach and captain also helped me on the bench. When I'm doubting, when it's tough during the match, he (Darcis) has the right words."

The 23-year-old Collignon, ranked 86th in the world, tapped into the Darcis spirit to claim his third singles win in this year's Davis Cup, having beaten Alex de Minaur and Aleksandar Vukic as Belgium stunned Australia in September to book their place in the Final Eight.

"Since I was a kid, I was watching every tie from Belgium," Collignon said. "I was watching my idols, like David (Goffin). Also Steve, my captain now. I always wanted to play this competition.

"It was at the start a dream,