Gavin Manders etched his name in Bermuda tennis history yet again after he won the second match of the Americas Group III Group B clash against Costa Rica, beating Pablo Nunez 6-4, 2-6, 6-4.

The Island side that consists of David Thomas, Neal Towson and Naim Azhar as well as Manders fell in their opening pool tie against Puerto Rico 3-0 before Manders got the win in the second match of the pool tie against Costa Rica.

Thomas had gone down in straight sets before Manders took to the court, and in a two and a half hour battle in 97 degrees heat, it was the Bermudian who got his countries' first win in Group III play.

"Being the first Bermudian to ever win a match in Group III, it makes me feel like all my hard work pays off," said Manders. "It's a step in the right direction for tennis in Bermuda, showing that we really can compete at the higher level.

"It was a war that lasted for hours, and it felt amazing to win the first match in Group III and it really was a team win as without Naim, Dave and Neil cheering on the side it could have been a different outcome.

"It felt great but at the same time I was heartbroken to lose the doubles.

"It was 97 degrees on the court, and definitely a higher level opponent than my matches last year in Group IV but I matched up well with Pablo as he is a big hitter and I knew if I could win the first set it would come down to who has the most heart and when it comes to heart, there aren't not many people even in Group III that match up with me."

The win came with a price, however, as the Bermuda number one injured his groin in the doubles, as the side fell to 0-2 in their group stage ties.

Bermuda's last matches are against Aruba and Haiti.

"The team was happy to make history but definitely down after having a chance to not only win a match but a full tie which would have given us a really good chance to stay in Group III for next year," added Manders.

"I injured my groin in the doubles in the first game in the second set against Costa Rica, it is not really bad but we will be putting Neal in my place against Haiti as he deserves a chance to shine.

"I will rest to be ready for Aruba on Sunday."