Nice Britain have been drawn to play Novak Djokovic’s Serbia within the quarter-finals of the Davis Cup in Malaga.
The knockout stage of the competitors, which GB final received in 2015, will probably be performed between 21 and 26 November.
Dan Evans and Neal Skupski needed to save 4 match factors to beat France in a decisive doubles match in Manchester on Sunday to qualify for the final eight.
Djokovic, who received with Serbia in 2010, says the competitors is his high precedence for the remainder of the season.
However the ties would be the best-of-three matches, and Serbia don’t have some other singles gamers within the high 30.
“We have topped this group so we anticipate to get a kinder draw within the quarter-finals however it’s not panned out that manner,” Nice Britain captain Leon Smith advised BBC Sport.
“However you realize what, we need to be there – and we have an opportunity in opposition to anybody. It does not matter if Novak performs for Serbia, or anything. You have to win two [singles] rubbers and a doubles and that is what we have proved to be good at.”
The winners will play both Italy or the Netherlands within the semi-finals, with Italy capable of name on world quantity seven Jannik Sinner and top-20 participant Lorenzo Musetti.
Hosts Spain will probably be absent from the Last Eight after failing to make it out of Group C, whereas 32-time champions america additionally miss out after shedding to Finland of their remaining Group D tie.
Within the high half of the draw, Canada will proceed their title defence in opposition to the Finns, who’re making their debut within the quarter-finals, whereas final yr’s runners-up Australia will play the Czech Republic.
Will GB make adjustments to staff?
The make-up of the Nice Britain staff for Malaga might show one in every of Smith’s trickier picks.
The schedule for the week is but to be confirmed however it appears greater than doubtless GB’s quarter-final will probably be performed on the Thursday to permit 24-time Grand Slam singles champion Djokovic extra time to get well from the earlier week’s ATP Finals in Turin.
Because of this had been GB to make it to Sunday’s remaining, they must play three ties in 4 days. Unbelievable although Evans was in profitable two matches stretching over practically 5 hours in Manchester on Sunday, asking him repeatedly to play two matches a day in such a small timeframe would appear each unrealistic and unwise.
His partnership with Skupski may be very a lot the very best doubles pairing of the staff Smith chosen for the group stage. Skupski and Andy Murray have by no means performed collectively on tour or in Davis Cup, and Cameron Norrie and Jack Draper are unlikely to be thought-about for doubles. So except Evans turns into a specialist doubles participant for the week, one other card-carrying member of the doubles tour might have to interchange one of many singles gamers within the staff.
The 2 names that spring to thoughts are Joe Salisbury and Jamie Murray.
Salisbury is the world quantity six and has received the US Open males’s doubles title with Rajeev Ram in every of the final three years. He has received two ATP titles with Skupski, however the pair should still have painful reminiscences of the 2021 Davis Cup quarter-final defeat by Germany, during which they misplaced seven factors in a row from 5-0 up within the second-set tie-break.
Salisbury has received simply two of his six Davis Cup matches thus far, however might doubtlessly additionally play with Andy Murray. They did lose each their matches within the group stage of the Finals in Glasgow final yr, however seemed a greater partnership on the Tokyo Olympics earlier than shedding a good quarter-final.
Jamie Murray is an fascinating possibility. He has not performed Davis Cup for 4 years, however he and Michael Venus are in rivalry to achieve the ATP Finals because the winners of three titles this yr. He performed on tour with Skupski for an 18-month interval and though it was not a runaway success, they nonetheless received a title, contested two different finals and a US Open semi-final.
And once they performed collectively within the Davis Cup Finals of 2021, they received their first two matches after which pushed Rafael Nadal and Feliciano Lopez shut in a semi-final which came about in Madrid.
And the way about Andy and Jamie taking part in collectively for his or her nation one final time? It’s a tantalising thought, however assumes Andy would nonetheless be chosen within the occasion of a singles participant making manner for a doubles specialist.
Evans and Skupski seem sure to be chosen, so who may miss out in that state of affairs?
The explosive youth of Draper, who received that essential match with Australia’s Thanasi Kokkinakis on his debut final week; Norrie, who has been comfortably the British primary for practically two years now; or Murray, a Davis Cup winner with solely three defeats within the 36 singles matches he has performed for his nation?
There may be lots of tennis to be performed in Asia and on the European indoor circuit earlier than Leon Smith has to finalise his staff. The preliminary choice should be made by 23 October, however as much as three adjustments are permitted till the eve of the knockout stage, and September’s kind e-book could also be out of print by November.
