World No.1 Novak Djokovic will lead Serbia in the Davis Cup Finals once again after getting officially nominated for the event on Monday.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion hasn’t played a competitive match since losing in the final of the US Open but had previously expressed his desire to play in the team event. Djokovic will be the only top 20 player participating in Group F with both Austria and Germany missing their top players. Dominic Thiem is still recovering from injury and Alexander Zverev has said he would not play in protest of the changes made to the Davis Cup in recent years.
Djokovic, who has won three out of the four major events this season, is expected to play in both the Paris Masters and ATP Finals prior to the Davis Cup. He was instrumental in guiding his country to glory in the team competition back in 2010 which was the first and only time they have won the title.
Russia boasts a strong team with both US Open champion Daniil Medvedev and world No.6 Andrey Rublev getting the nod. Making them the only team in the event to feature two top 10 players. Unlike other countries, they will be called the Russian Tennis Federation (RTF) in the tournament. This is due to a previous WADA and CAS ruling against the Russian Anti-Doping Agency over the country’s involvement in state-sponsored doping during multiple Olympic Games.
Italy, who hasn’t won the Davis Cup since 1976, will be headlined by Wimbledon runner-up Matteo Berrettini. Joining him in the team will be Jannik Sinner, Lorenzo Sonego, Fabio Fognini and Lorenzo Musetti. The Italians have the advantage of playing their group ties on home ground in Turin which is the same city which will hold the ATP Finals. They will take on America and Colombia.
It is possible that some nominations for the Davis Cup could change in the coming weeks. French captain Sebastien Grosjean told reporters that it is possible he may include Gael Monfils in the team should he produce some good results on the Tour. Meanwhile, Andy Murray isn’t ruling out taking part.
“Never say never, maybe I could be convinced to play,” The Times newspaper quoted Murray as saying on Monday.
The Davis Cup Finals will take place between November 25 – December 5th. The group and quarter-finals ties will be held across Europe in Madrid, Turin and Innsbruck. Then the semi-finals and final will be held in Madrid. Each Group tie will consist of three matches – two singles and one doubles.
Tournament schedule
List of team nominations
Group A – Madrid, Spain
Spain
Pablo Carreno Busta
Roberto Bautista Agut
Carlos Alcaraz
Feliciano Lopez
Marcel Granollers
Captain: Sergi Bruguera
RTF
Daniil Medvedev
Andrey Rublev
Aslan Karatsev
Karen Khachanov
Evgeny Donskoy
Captain: Shamil Tarpischev
Ecuador
Emilio Gomez
Roberto Quiroz
Diego Hidalgo
Gonzalo Escobar
Cayetano March
Captain: Raul Viver
Group B – Madrid, Spain
Canada
Felix Auger-Aliassime
Denis Shapovalov
Vasek Pospisil
Brayden Schnur
Peter Polansky
Captain: Frank Dancevic
Kazakhstan
Alexander Bublik
Mikhail Kukushkin
Dmitry Popko
Aleksandr Nedovyesov
Andrey Golubev
Captain: Yuriy Schukin
Sweden
Mikael Ymer
Elias Ymer
Jonathan Mridha
Andre Goransson
Captain: Robin Soderling
Group C – Innsbruck, Austria
France
Ugo Humbert
Arthur Rinderknech
Richard Gasquet
Pierre-Hugues Herbert
Nicolas Mahut
Captain: Sebastien Grosjean
Great Britain
Cameron Norrie
Daniel Evans
Joe Salisbury
Neal Skupski
Captain: Leon Smith
Czech Republic
Jiri Vesely
Tomas Machac
Zdenek Kolar
Jiri Lehecka
Lukas Rosol
Captain: Jaroslav Navratil
Group D – Turin, Italy
Croatia
Marin Cilic
Borna Coric
Borna Gojo
Nikola Mektic
Mate Pavic
Captain: Vedran Martic
Australia
Alex de Minaur
John Millman
Jordan Thompson
Alexei Popyrin
John Peers
Captain: Lleyton Hewitt
Hungary
Marton Fucsovics
Attila Balazs
Zsombor Marozsan
Mate Valkusz
Captain: Gabor Koves
Group E – Turin, Italy
USA
John Isner
Reilly Opelka
Taylor Fritz
Jack Sock
Rajeev Ram
Captain: Mardy Fish
Italy
Matteo Berrettini
Jannik Sinner
Lorenzo Sonego
Fabio Fognini
Lorenzo Musetti
Captain: Filippo Volandri
Colombia
Daniel Galan
Nicolas Mejia
Juan Sebastian Cabal
Robert Farah
Captain: Alejandro Falla
Group F – Innsbruck, Austria
Serbia
Novak Djokovic
Filip Krajinovic
Dusan Lajovic
Laslo Djere
Miomir Kecmanovic
Captain: Viktor Troicki
Germany
Jan Lennard Struff
Dominik Koepfer
Peter Gojowczyk
Kevin Krawietz
Tim Puetz
Captain: Michael Kohlmann
Austria
Dennis Novak
Jurij Rodionov
Gerald Melzer
Oliver Marach
Philipp Oswald
Captain: Stefan Koube
