DAVIS CUP TENNIS DETAILS FROM AROUND THE WORLD

 

2015 DAVIS CUP BY BNP PARIBAS

WORLD GROUP SEMIFINALS AND PLAY-OFFS

18-20 September

 

 

WORLD GROUP SEMIFINALS

 

Great Britain (c) v Australia            Emirates Arena, Glasgow, GBR – hard (indoors)

 

Belgium (c) v Argentina (s)             Forest National, Brussels, BEL – hard (indoors)

(s) = seed (c) choice of ground

 

 

BELGIUM AND GREAT BRITAIN LOOK TO END BARREN RUN…

Belgium and Great Britain are both bidding to end a lengthy wait for a place in the Davis Cup Final. Belgium is looking for its first Final since 1904 when, in its debut year in the competition, it lost to British Isles 5-0, while Great Britain is seeking a place in the Davis Cup Final for the first time since 1978, when it lost 4-1 to USA. By contrast, Argentina last reached the Final in 2011 and Australia won its last appearance in the title decider in 2003.

 

HISTORY IN THE MAKING?

Australia is in the most familiar territory of the four semifinalists, having won the Davis Cup on 28 occasions, most recently in Melbourne 12 years ago. Though Great Britain has won the title on 9 occasions, it has been 79 years since its last triumph in 1936. Argentina and Belgium have never won the Davis Cup.

 

GREAT BRITAIN DOMINATING FELLOW GRAND SLAM NATIONS?

Great Britain is bidding to become the first nation to defeat the 3 other Grand Slam nations in consecutive ties since it defeated Australia, USA and France en route to winning the Davis Cup title in 1933. By defeating USA in the first round and France in the quarterfinals to set up a semifinal with Australia, Great Britain has become the first Grand Slam nation to face the 3 other Grand Slam nations in consecutive ties since France faced USA, Australia and Great Britain in back-to-back ties in 1989-1990.

 

UNSEEDED NATIONS…

Australia, Belgium and Great Britain have ensured that 3 unseeded nations feature in the World Group semifinals for the first time in World Group history. Croatia (2005) and Serbia (2010) are the only unseeded nations to win the Davis Cup. Two unseeded nations have contested the Final on 2 occasions – in 2005 (Croatia d. Slovak Republic) and 2010 (Serbia d. France).

 

WORLD GROUP PLAY-OFFS

 

India (c) v Czech Republic (s)                         R.K. Khanna Tennis Stadium, New Delhi, IND (hard – outdoors)

 

Switzerland (s) (c) v Netherlands                   Palexpo, Geneva, SUI (hard – indoors)

 

Russia (c) v Italy (s)                                         Sports Palace ‘Baikal-Arena’, Irkutsk, RUS (hard – indoors)

 

Uzbekistan (c)* v USA (s)                                Olympic Tennis School, Tashkent, UZB (clay – outdoors)

 

Colombia (c) v Japan (s)                                 Club Campestre, Pereira, COL (clay – outdoors)

 

Dominican Republic (c)* v Germany (s)        Centro Nacional de Tenis Parque del Este, Santo Domingo,
DOM (hard – outdoors)

 

Brazil (c) v Croatia (s)                                       Costao do Santinho Resort, Florianopolis, BRA (clay – outdoors)

 

Poland (c) v Slovakia (s)                                  Gdynia Arena, Gdynia, POL (hard – indoors)

(s) = seed (c) = choice of ground * = choice of ground was decided by lot

 

 

Czech Republic will look to prolong its 9-year stay in the World Group when it takes on India in New Delhi. The Czechs are in unusual territory having reached at least the World Group semifinals for the last 3 years, with this just the 2nd World Group play-off Czech Republic has contested since 2007. India is featuring in the World Group play-offs for the 2nd year running, having lost to Serbia at this stage last year. Victory over the 3-time Davis Cup champion would send India back into the World Group for the first time since 2011.

 

2014 champion Switzerland takes on Netherlands in a bid to avoid dropping into Zone Group competition for the first time since 2011. Netherlands, meanwhile, will look to bounce back into the World Group after seeing Croatia end its first year in the competition’s top tier since 2009 in last year’s play-offs. This is the 4th meeting between Switzerland and Netherlands in 12 years, with Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka both set to face a Dutch team for a 3rd time.

 

Russia and Italy go head-to-head for the first time since 1996, with Italy bidding to extend its 4-1 record over the host nation. The visitors, semifinalists last year, will hope to maintain their 4-year stay in the top tier of the competition, while Russia is looking to break free from Zone Group competition and return to the World Group for the first time since 2012.

 

Uzbekistan will hope to end a run of 7 defeats in the World Group play-offs against USA in Tashkent. While the Uzbeks are through to the World Group play-offs for the 4th time in the last 7 years – and 8th time overall – this is the first time the nation has had the advantage of playing a World Group play-off on home soil since 2000. USA will hope to stop the hosts recording a landmark victory and a maiden World Group berth, which would see Jim Courier’s men plunge into Zone Group competition for the first time since 1988.

 

After 3 failures in the World Group play-offs, Colombia will look to strike it 4th time lucky when it takes on Japan in Pereira. Japan came from 2-1 down to triumph in Tokyo when the two nations met for the first time at this stage of the competition in 2013, but Colombia will hope the benefit of playing at home can help it reach the World Group for the first time in history.

 

Dominican Republic hosts Germany in its first appearance in the World Group play-offs. A surprise victory would see the Dominicans become just the 2nd Caribbean nation after Cuba (1993) to reach the competition’s top tier since the inception of the World Group in 1981. The host nation has already achieved a landmark just by reaching the play-offs, becoming only the 3rd Caribbean nation to feature at this stage of the competition after Bahamas and Cuba. By contrast, Germany has spent just 3 years out of the World Group since 1981, and is bidding to extend its 10-year stay in the top tier.

 

Brazil and Croatia face off in a bid to maintain their World Group status for 2015. Brazil has lost 7 of the 9 World Group play-offs it has contested over the last 9 years, but the nation will be buoyed by the fact that both of its play-off wins in that time – in 2012 and 2014 – came on home soil. Visitors Croatia will look to avoid dropping into Europe/Africa Zone Group I for only the 3rd time since 2001, having played at that level in 2008 and 2014.

 

Slovakia will hope to end a 9-year absence from the World Group when it travels to Poland. The Slovaks have lost all 4 of the World Group play-offs they have contested since losing to Chile in the World Group first round in 2006. Poland, meanwhile, has arguably its best chance to reach the top tier of the competition for the first time, having lost to Australia in its only previous appearance in the play-offs in 2013.

 

CHOICE OF GROUND – WORLD GROUP FINAL

The Davis Cup Final will take place on 27-29 November. Below is the choice of ground for all potential match-ups. The venue details are due to be submitted to the ITF by 28 September.

Possible Final                                          Venue

GREAT BRITAIN V ARGENTINA              GBR

GREAT BRITAIN V BELGIUM                   BEL

AUSTRALIA V ARGENTINA                     AUS

AUSTRALIA V BELGIUM                          BEL

 

 

PAST CHAMPIONS

• In total, 14 nations have won the Davis Cup.

• USA – 32
• Australia – 28
• France, Great Britain – 9
• Sweden – 7
• Spain – 5
• Germany – 3
• Czechoslovakia/Czech Republic – 3
• Russia – 2
• Croatia, Italy, Serbia, South Africa, Switzerland – 1

 

 

ALL FIVE TO FIVE…

Only twice have all 5 rubbers of a Davis Cup tie gone to 5 sets: 1946 European Zone semifinal, Yugoslavia defeated France 3-2 and 2003 World Group play-off, Romania defeated Ecuador 3-2.

 

COMEBACKS FROM 0-2 DOWN…

There have been just 9 comebacks from 0-2 down in World Group ties. Sweden has produced 4 of these comebacks. Australia recorded the most recent one in the 2015 quarterfinals after defeating Kazakhstan 3-2 in Darwin. In the Davis Cup overall there have been 56 comebacks from 0-2 down since the competition began in 1900.

 

TOP TIEBREAKS…

The most tiebreaks in a Davis Cup tie is 11 (Croatia d. Brazil 4-1, 2008 World Group play-off).

 

PARTICIPATING NATIONS…

126 nations have entered the 2015 Davis Cup by BNP Paribas.

 

DAVIS CUP NATIONS RANKING…

The ITF Davis Cup Nations Ranking was launched at the end of 2001. It is published following every tie weekend and measures success over the preceding 4-year period, with recent performances weighted more heavily. It is the sole criteria for seeding at all levels of Davis Cup competition.

 

Latest Davis Cup Nations Ranking (20 July 2015)

 

1. Czech Republic           11. Italy

2. Switzerland                 12. Kazakhstan

3. France                         13. USA

4. Argentina                     14. Japan

5. Serbia                          15. Germany

6. Great Britain                16. Croatia

7. Australia                      17. Slovakia

8. Belgium                       18. Brazil

9. Spain                           19. Netherlands

10. Canada                      20. Poland

 

 

DAVIS CUP RECORDS^

 

 

*the tiebreak was introduced in Davis Cup in 1989; ^for further details see the Statistics page on DavisCup.com

 

 

Great Britain v Australia – Emirates Arena, Glasgow, Great Britain – hard (indoors)

 

Head-to-head: Australia leads 8-4

 

This is the 13th meeting between the two nations, 108 years after Australasia defeated British Isles 3-2 in their first Davis Cup meeting at Wimbledon (Worple Road) in 1907.

 

Australia has won the last 3 meetings between the two nations 4-1 – in 1983, 1986 and 2003 – while Great Britain has not defeated Australia since 1978, when it won 3-2 on carpet on home soil at Crystal Palace.

 

This is the first meeting between Australia and Great Britain on a hard court. 10 of their previous meetings came on grass, with one on carpet and one on clay.

 

GREAT BRITAIN	v	AUSTRALIA
6	Current DC Nations Ranking	7
Champion 9 times (most recent 1936)	Best Result	Champion 28 times (most recent 2003)
1900	First year played	1905
104	Years played (incl 2015)	96
14	Years in World Group (incl 2015)	28
241	Ties played	250
147-94	Ties Win-Loss	184-66
2	Comebacks from 0-2 down	2

 

GREAT BRITAIN is bidding to reach the Davis Cup Final for the first time since 1978, when it finished runner-up after losing 4-1 to USA.

 

Great Britain is looking to reach its 20th Davis Cup Final overall. The nation has been crowned Davis Cup champion 9 times, with its last title coming in 1936 when it defeated this weekend’s opponents 3-2 in the Challenge Round Final.

 

Great Britain has advanced to the World Group semifinals for the first time since 1981 after defeating USA 3-2 in the first round in Glasgow and France 3-1 in the quarterfinals at Queen’s Club. Great Britain lost to Argentina 5-0 the last time it reached this stage of the competition 34 years ago.

 

Great Britain is contesting its 3rd consecutive home tie. Great Britain has won 8 of its last 9 home ties in the competition, with its only defeat in that time coming in a 4-1 loss to Belgium in the Group I Europe/Africa 2nd round in Glasgow in 2012.

 

Last year, Great Britain reached the quarterfinals for the first time since 1986 after defeating USA 3-1 in the first round in San Diego before falling to Italy 3-2 in the quarterfinals in Naples.

 

Andy Murray is the 10th most successful British player in terms of total Davis Cup match-wins. He could equal Buster Mottram in 7th place on the list for most total Davis Cup match-wins if he plays and wins 3 matches this weekend.

 

Most overall Davis Cup match-wins by a British player

 

1.	Fred Perry	45-7
2.	Mike Sangster	43-22
3.	Bobby Wilson	41-20
4.	Tim Henman	40-14
5=	Bunny Austin Tony Mottram	36-12 36-20
7.	Buster Mottram	31-10
8.	Greg Rusedski	30-13
9.	Roger Taylor	29-11
10.	Andy Murray	28-7

 

Andy Murray could equal Tony Mottram (25-13) in 7th place on the list for most singles wins by a British man if he wins 2 singles rubbers this weekend. He is currently in 8th place with a 23-2 singles win-loss record.

 

Andy Murray has never lost a Davis Cup singles rubber on a hard court. He has a 9-0 win-loss record in singles rubbers on a hard court, losing just one set – against Donald Young in the World Group first round this year.

 

James Ward has a 4-1 win-loss record in 5-set matches in Davis Cup. His only 5-set defeat in Davis Cup came against Evgeny Donskoy in Great Britain’s comeback from 0-2 down against Russia in Europe/Africa Group I in 2013.

 

Great Britain is the only nation that has competed in all the editions of the Davis Cup since 1900.

 

Great Britain is playing in the World Group in back-to-back years for the first time since 2002-2003.

 

Great Britain is ranked No. 6 on the ITF Davis Cup Nations Ranking – its highest ranking since the Davis Cup Nations Ranking was introduced in 2001.

 

If Great Britain wins, it will host Argentina or travel to Belgium for the Final on 27-29 November.

 

AUSTRALIA is bidding to reach its 49th Davis Cup Final but first since 2003, when it defeated Spain 3-1 in Melbourne.

 

Australia has advanced to the semifinals for the first time since 2006. It defeated 3-time Davis Cup champion Czech Republic 3-2 in the World Group first round in Ostrava and recovered from 0-2 down to defeat Kazakhstan 3-2 in the quarterfinals in Darwin. Australia’s win over Kazakhstan was just the 9th comeback from 0-2 in World Group history and the first time a nation had come back from 0-2 down on grass at any level of Davis Cup since Italy defeated Australia 3-2 on the surface in 1960.

 

Last year, Australia fell to France 5-0 in the first round in La Roche sur Yon in its first World Group appearance since 2007, but retained its place in the elite tier with a 5-0 victory over Uzbekistan in their World Group play-off tie in Perth.

 

Australia has been crowned Davis Cup champion 28 times, second only to USA (32) on the all-time list of Davis Cup champions. Lleyton Hewitt is the nation’s most successful player, with a total win-loss record of 58-19 and a singles win-loss record of 42-14. Hewitt has also played the most ties for Australia, with 40 (prior to this one) over 17 years.

 

Hewitt has a 22-2 overall win-loss record for Australia in Davis Cup ties on a hard court. He has a 16-1 win-loss record in singles and 6-1 win-loss record in doubles on the surface in Davis Cup. His only losses both came in 5-sets – in singles against Danai Udomchoke in 2009 and in doubles with Sam Groth against Czech pair Adam Pavlasek/Jiri Vesely in the first round in March.

 

Hewitt could tie Mark Woodforde in 4th place on the list for most Davis Cup doubles match-wins by an Australian if he plays and wins the doubles rubber. Hewitt has a 16-5 win-loss record in doubles matches for Australia behind Todd Woodbridge (25-7), John Bromwich (20-1), Adrian Quist (19-3) and Woodforde (17-5).

 

Australia is ranked No. 7 on the ITF Davis Cup Nations Ranking, its highest ranking since September 2007.

 

If Australia wins this weekend, it will either host Argentina or travel to Belgium in the Final on 27-29 November.

 

 

Belgium v Argentina – Forest National, Brussels, Belgium – hard (indoors)

 

Head-to-head: Belgium leads 1-0

The only previous meeting between the 2 nations also came in Brussels – when Belgium saw off a fightback from Argentina to win 3-2 in the decisive 5th rubber in their Europe second round clash in 1948.

 

BELGIUM	v	ARGENTINA
8	Current DC Nations Ranking	4
Runner-up 1904	Best Result	Runner-up 4 times
1904	First Year Played	1923
93	Years Played (inc 2015)	61
17	Years in World Group (inc 2015)	23
181	Ties Played	146
91-90	Ties Win-Loss	84-62
0	Comebacks from 0-2 down	0

 

BELGIUM is bidding to reach the Davis Cup Final for the first time since making its debut in the competition in 1904, when it finished runner-up to Great Britain.

 

Belgium is through to the World Group semfiinals for the first time since 1999 and just the 2nd time since the inception of the World Group in 1981. In 1999, Belgium defeated Czech Republic and Switzerland before losing to France in the last 4.

 

Belgium advanced to the semifinals after defeating defending champion Switzerland 3-2 in the first round in Liege and Canada 5-0 in the quarterfinals in Middelkerke (Ostend).

 

Belgium is bidding to win 4 consecutive Davis Cup ties for the first time since 1989-1990, when it won 5 straight ties to rise from Europe Group II into the World Group.

 

Last year, Belgium lost to Kazakhstan 3-2 in the first round, before defeating Ukraine 3-2 in the World Group play-offs.

 

If Belgium wins this weekend, it will either host Australia or Great Britain in the Final on 27-29 November.

 

Goffin has a 9-2 win-loss record in Davis Cup singles rubbers. He has a 5-1 win-loss record on hard courts in the competition, with his only loss coming in 5-sets (12-10 in final set) against Kazakhstan’s Andrey Golubev in the World Group first round in 2014.

 

ARGENTINA is bidding to reach its 5th Davis Cup Final, having finished runner-up in 1981 (l. USA), 2006 
(l. Russia), 2008 (l. Spain) and 2011 (l. Spain).

 

Argentina is one of 3 nations, along with India and Romania, to have reached more than one Davis Cup Final without being crowned champion, but the only one to have lost 4 Finals without winning the title.

 

Argentina is through to its 10th World Group semifinal since 2002. The nation is playing in the World Group for the 14th consecutive year.

 

Argentina recovered from 2-1 down to defeat Brazil 3-2 in the World Group first round in Buenos Aires in a tie notable for the 4th rubber, which saw Leonardo Mayer defeat Joao Souza in 5-sets in the longest singles rubber in Davis Cup history at 6 hours 43 minutes. The nation went on to defeat 2010 champion Serbia 4-1 in the quarterfinals.

 

Last year, Argentina lost to Italy 3-1 in the 1st round in Mar del Plata. It was the first time in 13 years it had failed to make the quarterfinals or better. Argentina defeated Israel 3-2 on neutral soil in Florida to retain its World Group status.

 

If Argentina wins this weekend it will travel to either Australia or Great Britain in the Final on 27-29 November.

 

Leonardo Mayer is bidding to extend his 7-match winning streak in Davis Cup rubbers for Argentina, having not lost a singles or doubles rubber since falling to Tomas Berdych in Argentina’s 3-2 defeat to Czech Republic in the 2013 World Group semifinals. He has a 7-3 singles win-loss record and an 8-4 overall win-loss record in Davis Cup.

 

Federico Delbonis is bidding to maintain his undefeated record in Davis Cup singles rubbers. Delbonis has a 2-0 win-loss record in Davis Cup singles, defeating Brazil’s Thomaz Bellucci in the decisive 5th rubber in the first round and Viktor Troicki in 5-sets in the 2nd rubber in the quarterfinals against Serbia.

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