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Can Alcaraz bounce back to spearhead Spain’s Davis Cup charge?
Carlos Alcaraz will look to channel home support this week as he seeks a quick response to his US Open disappointment at the Davis Cup Finals Group Stage.
The No. 3 in the PIF ATP Rankings, who was upset by Botic van de Zandschulp in the second round in New York, will lead six-time champion Spain’s Group B campaign in Valencia. Alcaraz will be representing his country at the ‘World Cup of Tennis’ for the first time since 2022.
Joining the Roland Garros and Wimbledon champion in representing their country in Group B are World No. 11 Alex de Minaur (Australia), No. 18 Ugo Humbert (France) and No. 37 Jiri Lehecka (Czechia). All four nations competing at the Pabellon Fuente de San Luis are former Davis Cup champions.
Australia's Alex de Minaur in action during the 2023 Davis Cup Final. (Photo credit: Clive Brunskill/Getty Images for ITF)
A host of ATP Tour stars will also be in action in Bologna, Manchester and Zhuhai as group stage action takes place from 10-15 September. The winners and runners-up of each group will advance to the Davis Cup Finals Knockout Stage, to be held in Malaga from 19-24 November, when the 2024 Davis Cup champions will be decided.
Like Alcaraz’s Spain, Italy will compete on home soil. The defending champion will rely on its strength in depth in Bologna as it plots a return to the knockout stage. The two leading Italians in the PIF ATP Rankings, Jannik Sinner and Lorenzo Musetti, are both unavailable, but captain Filippo Volandri nonetheless has three Top 50 singles players to choose from in Flavio Cobolli, Matteo Arnaldi and Matteo Berrettini.
Italy’s rivals in Group A are Belgium, Brazil and the Netherlands, all of whom are chasing their maiden Davis Cup crown.
[ATP APP]Having reached his maiden Grand Slam semi-final in New York last week, Jack Draper will be full of confidence as he leads Great Britain’s Group D campaign in Manchester. The 22-year-old, the great new hope for men’s tennis in his country after the recent retirement of Andy Murray, joins Davis Cup stalwart Daniel Evans and Wimbledon doubles champion Henry Patten in the host country’s lineup.
An Argentina team that features Top 35 singles stars Sebastian Baez, Francisco Cerundolo and Tomas Martin Etcheverry will provide stiff competition to Draper and his teammates, as will 2022 titlist Canada, which is led by Felix Auger-Aliassime. Finland, which recorded its best Davis Cup result by reaching the semi-finals in 2023, completes the Group D lineup.
History will be made when Group C action kicks off in Zhuhai. The first Davis Cup Finals event to be held in China will feature Chile, Germany, Slovakia and USA battling for two spots at the knockout stage.
Brandon Nakashima has been named on the USA’s Davis Cup roster for the first time, a reward for the strong form that has lifted him to a career-high No. 40 in the PIF ATP Rankings. Mackenzie McDonald and Reilly Opelka are also singles options for the record 32-time Davis Cup champion, with Paris Olympics silver medallists Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram providing strength on the doubles court.
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