RICKY DIMON REPORTS TENNIS NEWS FROM KOOYONG – NICK KYRGIOS IS OUT OF THE DAVIS CUP, BIG MAN SAM GROTH TO WORK DOUBLE-DUTY STARTING WITH MATCH AGAINST BIG JOHN ISNER

Written by: Staff on 3rd March 2016

BNP Paribas 2015 Masters Tennis Tournament

RICKY DIMON REPORTS TENNIS NEWS FROM KOOYONG - NICK KYRGIOS IS OUT OF THE DAVIS CUP, BIG MAN SAM GROTH TO WORK DOUBLE-DUTY STARTING WITH MATCH AGAINST BIG JOHN ISNER

epa05012612 John Isner of US serves the ball to Roger Federer of Switzerland during their round of sixteen match at the BNP Paribas 2015 Masters tennis tournament in Paris, France, 05 November 2015. EPA/YOAN VALAT |

On the heels of a grueling February workload that included his first-ever ATP title in Marseille and a semifinal run in Dubai, Nick Kyrgios has been ruled out of this weekend’s Davis Cup tie between Australia and the United States. Kyrgios dealt with a back injury last week in Dubai and has since been stricken by a virus, so he will not be able to suit up for action on the grass courts of the Kooyong Club in Melbourne.

Aussie captain Lleyton Hewitt inserted himself onto the official team roster of four potential players, but he is unlikely to contest any of the five rubbers. Instead, Sam Groth is scheduled to take over for Kyrgios in singles to go along with doubles duty (likely partnering John Peers against Bob and Mike Bryan).

Thursday nominations produced an opening singles showdown between Groth and John Isner and the two huge servers will be going head-to-head for the first time in their careers on Friday afternoon. With home-court advantage, the Australians have chosen to play the tie on grass. That surface should favor Groth, who advanced to the third round of Wimbledon last summer and took a set off eventual runner-up Roger Federer. The 77th-ranked Aussie, however, has been a borderline disaster this season. His singles record stands at 1-6 at the ATP level and he is currently mired in a five-match losing streak (one Challenger loss included) dating back to round two of the Australian Open.

Traditionally a slow starter every year, Isner once again slumped through January and February. The 11th-ranked American made a run to the last 16 in Melbourne but has managed to pick up just just a single win at his three other tournaments combined. An ill-advised visit to the Golden Swing on South American clay resulted in nothing more than losses to Dusan Lajovic in Buenos Aires and Guido Pella in Rio de Janeiro–both from match point up. While clay is not ideal for Isner, grass is even worse because he has to hit balls low in his strike zone and his kick serve is not as effective.

Jack Sock of the United States returns the ball during the men’s match between the United States of America and Australia Gold in session 6 on day 3 of the Hopman Cup at the Perth Arena, Perth, Australia, 05 January 2016. EPA/TONY MCDONOUGH

Rubber number two will pit Jack Sock against Bernard Tomic in what will be their fourth career encounter. All three of their previous meetings have gone Sock’s way. The 23-year-old American prevailed indoors in Stockholm via a 6-4, 6-2 decision three seasons ago before winning twice in 2014; 7-6(4), 6-7(4), 6-4 in Shanghai and 6-2, 6-4 in Paris qualifying a few weeks later.

A number of factors including current form, home-court advantage, and the grass-court setting should help Tomic turn the tables. The 23-year-old Australian is coming off a runner-up finish in Acapulco and will make a quick transition from hard courts to grass. But he will have had plenty of practice days by the time he takes the court for this match and he has always been comfortable on the slick stuff. Tomic is a former Wimbledon quarterfinalist (2011) and he advanced to fourth round at the All-England Club in 2013.

Sock, who does his best work on hard courts, is a decent 5-3 on the season and has not won a match since round one of the Australian Open.