Ireland have never played with such authority on the first day of a Davis Cup tie. Owen Casey and John Doran yesterday bagged straight sets victories with panache and rapidity for a 2-0 lead over Monaco at Riverview that sent statisticians scurrying for the record book.

Casey dealt with Sabastien Graeff 6-2 6-3 6-1 in one hour 18 minutes. Only the 6 ft 3 in Graeff's obstinacy towards the end of each set spoilt the Irishman's chances of challenging the record for the shortest rubber in the Davis Cup, of one hour 11 minutes.

Doran, playing in his second live Cup rubber, again showed potential despite a litany of errors while blitzing Monaco's number one, Christophe Bossio, 6-3 6-3 6-1 in 90 minutes.

The pint-sized Bossio could claim something of a record after winning the fourth game of the final set in 90 seconds flat, ; with two booming aces and two service winners.

A statistic that will not be lost on the Monaco team, though, is the fact that there has been only 38 comebacks from 0-2 in Davis Cup ties since the event began in 1900. Ominously, in one of these comebacks Ireland's Matt Doyle and Sean Sorensen lost to Monaco in Monte Carlo.

The blustery conditions were off-putting for all four players. Doran admitted that he was affected by nerves early in his match. His most worrying time came at 0-3 down in the second set.

"I knew at that stage I had to regain the initiative," the Harvard student said. "I had been tentative at stages."

Doran then won a stunning 12 of the last 13 games.

"It was a great match for John," said team captain Peter Wright. "He overcame trouble on serve by coming up with some good service games to hold on crucial points."

Doran was gracious in victory. "He can be a better player than that," he said. "He was not happy in the windy conditions. I saw him in practice hitting the ball cleaner."

Graeff's performance indicated he was a better player than Bossio. He was physically stronger, had an uninhibited second serve and covered the court well. But in truth he possessed little to hurt Casey.

Casey broke Graeff's serve eight times and forced his opponent into errors with pounding forehands and plenty of variation of pace and direction.

"I would describe my game as solid," Casey said. "It wasn't a day for pretty tennis. You threw the ball up and it was in another place when you served."

Graeff said Casey played with plenty of confidence. "I knew if I was going to win, my first serve would have to be working well," he said.

"I feel I didn't play well. The wind was bad for everybody but Casey is more accustomed to playing on that surface (synthetic grass). Clay is best for me."

Casey said he expects the doubles this afternoon to be tough. "They will be all out to win. They have nothing to lose." Graeff said: "We will have to relax now, forget all about today and play to win."