Croatian Davis Cup captain Zeliko Krajan has announced the names of players who are set to play in the Davis Cup final between Croatia and Argentina. This year’s final will take place from 25th to 27th November 2016 on hard court at the Arena Zagreb, an indoor facility with a capacity of 15000 spectators.
Despite injury concerns after undergoing surgery recently, Borna Coric has been named alongside this year’s Cincinnati and Basel champion Marin Cilic, 37-year-old Ivo Karlovic and doubles world number 11 Ivan Dodig, who is now playing in the ATP Finals in London alongside hs partner Marcelo Melo.
Coric won decisive fifth-set matches against Belgium in the first round in Liege and against the USA in the quarter finals in Portland, although there are doubts over his fitness to play in the final in less than than two weeks. For this reason, Krajan has named Croatian veteran Ivo Karlovic, who was part of the Croatian team, that clinched the Fed Cup title in 2005 as unseeded team in Bratislava against Slovakia.
Karlovic will make his return to the Davis Cup for the first time since 2012, when Croatia lost to Argentina in the quarter finals.
Argentina’s captain Daniel Orsanic named this year’s Olympic silver medallist Juan Martin Del Potro, Federico Delbonis, Guido Pella and Leonardo Mayer.
Argentina is bidding to win the first Davis Cup title in its fifth Davis Cup Final appearance after losing four times in 1981, 2006, 2008 and 2011. The South American nation has reached the final after winning a fantastic semifinal against Great Britain in Glasgow. In a re-match of the Olympic final Del Potro won an epic five-hour and seven-minute battle against Andy Murray.
