BERLIN (Reuters) - German Defence Minister Boris Pistorius told members of the ruling Social Democrats that he would not run as chancellor candidate for the party in February's snap election, clearing the way for Chancellor Olaf Scholz to run for a second term.

Scholz and leaders of his center-left Social Democrats vowed Friday to fight their way back from a wide poll deficit ahead of the election, expected to take place Feb. 23. They insisted that the chancellor’s three years in power have brought successes and that the Social Democrats weren’t responsible for the infighting that pushed his unpopular three-party coalition government to collapse this month .

Boris Pistorius has ruled himself out as the next leader of Germany’s Social Democrats (SPD), clearing the path for Chancellor Olaf Scholz to take the embattled party into snap elections.

Rafael Nadal in professional tennis, 80th-ranked Botic van de Zandschulp, converted his 10th match point Friday to finally close out a 6-4, 6-7 (12), 6-3 victory over Daniel Altmaier and help the Netherlands reach its first Davis Cup final by sweeping Germany.

An inspired Netherlands team made Davis Cup history as they put their nation into the final for the first time ever with a 2-0 defeat of Germany on Friday. Singles wins for Botic Van de Zandschulp and Tallon Griekspoor sparked a party amongst an army of orange-clad Dutch fans inside the Jose Maria Martin Carpena arena.