Davis Cup 2024: Top 10 players to watch out for in September ties

Published at :September 12, 2024 at 4:37 AM

Modified at :September 12, 2024 at 4:37 AM

(Courtesy : Getty Images)

Last year’s finalists, Italy and Australia, will be without the services of their top-ranked players in Davis Cup 2024.

The attention shifts to the Davis Cup 2024 matches on the wrapping up of the Grand Slam season. The group stage finals are scheduled between 10th and 15th September across multiple locations. This stage of the competition will determine who will go through the last eight knockout stage to be hosted by Malaga between 19th and 24th November. There are 16 teams in the fray for eight spots in the Davis Cup Final round.

Meanwhile matches in the world group 1 has also begun from 10th September consisting of 24 nations. A total of 12 ties will take place amongst them as the winners of each tie will proceed to the playoffs.

The International Tennis Federation’s (ITF) decision to allocate the Davis Cup group stage fixtures to four locations means the Hengqin International Tennis Center in Zhuhai, China, has been roped in as host. The other three venues to host the group stage finals are the Unipol Arena in Bologna, Italy, the Pabellon Fuente de San Luis in Valencia, Spain and finally the AO Arena in Manchester, England.

Let’s have a look at the top 10 players to keep an eye on as the Davis Cup 2024 action gets underway.

Players to watch in September ties of Davis Cup 2024

Alexei Popyrin

Alexei Popyrin is one of the players to watch in the Australian squad following his unexpected win at the Canadian Masters. Along with Max Purcell and Matthew Ebden in the doubles, he will be responsible for Australia’s fortunes in Group A.

Australia, finalists for the last two years, will take on the Czech Republic on Thursday (September 12th) after edging out France 2-1 in their opening round fixture.

The Australians, with 28 wins, own the most Davis Cup titles after the USA, who are in pole position with 32. The men from Down Under were at their peak between 1950 and 1967, a time gap that fetched them 15 of their 28 titles.

Arthur Fils

Frenchman Arthur Fils represents France which has won the Davis Cup 10 times, in joint third with Great Britain. The French won their first six titles in a row between 1927 and 1932. Their most recent Davis Cup title came in 2017 against Belgium.

Arthur Fils, who made the ATP top 20 for the first time in July 2024, will join Ugo Humbert and Arthur Rinderknech to take on Spain in their Group B match on Friday (September 13th). The French are currently in second place following their loss to Australia.

The nation enjoyed their most successful stint between 1927 and 1932 when they won six straight titles.

Carlos Alcaraz

The 2019 Davis Cup champions, Spain, will host the Czech Republic in Valencia as they bid to return to home soil in Malaga in two months’ time. While Carlos Alcaraz is spearheading the Spanish squad, non-playing captain David Ferrer will expect doubles specialists Marcel Granollers and Pedro Martinez to pull their weight in the event.

Alcaraz is playing his second Davis Cup, having last turned up for the team event in 2022. Like the English team, the Spaniards are without mainstay, in this case, Rafael Nadal. Alcaraz has big shoes to fill, as Nadal was part of the Davis Cup for four of their six wins.

The Spanish conquest for the Davis Cup begins against France on Friday, September 13th.

Fellix Auger-Aliassime

Felix Auger-Aliassime was a member of the Canadian team that defeated Australia for their first Davis Cup trophy in 2022. Canada also made the finals in 2019, where they lost to Spain.

Auger-Aliassime helped his country begin on the right note with a 2-1 win over Argentina on Tuesday (September 10th). Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov won their singles matches in straight sets in the AO Arena in Manchester to ensure the doubles game was a dead rubber.

They will now play minnows Finland on Thursday (September 12th).

Jack Draper

Jack Draper will represent ten-time Davis Cup champions Great Britain. The last time England won the title was nearly a decade ago in 2015. The British squad will be without the services of Andy Murray, who retired earlier this year. Draper will be stepping into Murray’s shoes and will have a lot to live up to – the Scot was part of the team that won the Davis Cup in 2015.

Draper, the 2024 US Open semi-finalist can rely on the support of veterans Neal Skupski and Billy Harris in their quest to bring home the Davis Cup. The three of them will have to hold it together if they are to win an eleventh Davis Cup title.

Draper & Co have a great window of opportunity to take the Union Jack to Malaga when they face Finland on Wednesday (September 11th).

Joao Fonseca

Brazilian teenager Joao Fonseca created more than a ripple when he overcame two players in the ATP Top 100 on home turf in Rio de Janeiro. At the ATP 500 event, he overcame Arthur Fils (36) and Cristian Garin (88) in the opening rounds. Fonseca was the 655th-ranked player at the event.

Having jumped nearly 500 spots since the beginning of the season, Fonseca reached a career-high of No. 158 in September. The Brazilian teen is playing his first Davis Cup and can lend a helping hand to his more experienced teammate, Thiago Monteiro.

Brazil will have their hands full when they take on defending champions Italy on Wednesday (September 11th).

Matteo Berrettini

Matteo Berrettini is the stand-in for star player Jannik Sinner in the Italian squad. Sinner is taking a breather following his 2024 US Open triumph. In his absence, 2021 Wimbledon runner up Berrettini will lead the Italians.

Italy hosts the Brazilians in their Group A match in Bologna on Wednesday (September 11th). This will be the third time Brazil have turned up for the team event following their first-round exits from the World Group in 2022 and 2023.

Berrettini will be joined by young Italians Matteo Arnaldi and Flavio Cobolli as they aim to win the Davis Cup for the second year in a row. Arnaldi was part of the team that won last year.

Novak Djokovic

Novak Djokovic represents Serbia, who are in the World Group 1 after losing to Italy, 2-1, in the semi-finals last year. Djokovic helped guide his team to victory in the 2010 Davis Cup with a 3-2 win over France. The Serbian side is yet to return to the winner’s circle since winning their only Davis Cup trophy.

Djokovic will be raring to go after winning an Olympic gold for the first time in 2024 Paris. He appears to reserve his best for elusive targets and holding aloft the Davis Cup trophy for the first time in close to 15 years is one such goal. Relative newcomers to the Davis Cup arena, Miomir Kecmanovic and Hamad Medjedovic, will be joining Djokovic in the quest for the trophy.

Serbia will take on Greece between 14-15 September 2024 at the Aleksandar Nikolic Hall, Belgrade, Serbia. The Greek team will miss the services of Stefanos Tsitsipas, who has been sidelined from an injury a week ago.

Brandon Nakashima

The cream of the American talent, including Taylor Fritz, Frances Tiafoe and Ben Shelton have made themselves unavailable for the 2024 Davis Cup Finals group stage. This leaves World No. 40 Brandon Nakashima along with doubles specialists Rajeev Ram and Austin Krajicek the unenviable task of winning their first Davis Cup trophy since 2007.

The Americans have won 32 titles since the team event’s inception, but have consistently fallen short since they last won 17 years ago. The year 2007 saw the team’s captain Bob Bryan being on the court. Last season, they were whitewashed by Finland 3-0 in the first round.

Chile were the first team the USA faced in their Group C match on Wednesday (September 11th). The Americans started with a confident 3-0 win.

Sriram Balaji

Sriram Balaji, a familiar name in Indian tennis is part of the squad that will take on seven-time champions Sweden in the the World Group 1 opening round. The Indians and the Swedes will clash at the Royal Tennis Hall in Stockholm on the 14th and 15th of September.

India were runner-ups in 1966, 1974, and 1987. The Swedes took home the trophy on seven occasions between 1975 and 1998.

Both sides have their best days behind them and enter their fixture on equal footing. Andre Goransson (66) and one step behind Sriram Balaji (65) are the highest-ranked players for their respective sides and are doubles specialists.

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