Valencia, Spain, 9 September 2024 | Leigh Rogers
Australia’s quest to win a first Davis Cup title in 21 years begins in Spain this week.
The Australian team will compete in the round-robin stage of the 2024 Davis Cup Finals in Valencia, looking to secure a place in the knock-out stage of the competition in November.
The second-seeded Australian team headlines a strong Group B, which includes a Spanish line-up led by world No.3 Carlos Alcaraz.
Yet according to Alexei Popyrin, the Aussie team is feeling confident about its chances.
“It’s a huge opportunity for us to test ourselves against the best teams in the world, best countries in the world,” said the in-form Popyrin, who has won nine of his past 11 matches.
“We’re back-to-back finalists in Davis Cup, so we’ve got to hold ourselves up and show what we’re made of.”
The 25-year-old Australian admitted memories of runner-up finishes in the past two years provided added motivation in the prestigious team competition.
“We really want to win one,” Popyrin declared. “It’s [been] top of our priority [list] all year long.”
The Australian team boasts incredible depth, with multiple options across both singles and doubles.
| Australian Davis Cup team | ||||
| Player | Age | Davis Cup W-L record |
Singles ranking |
Doubles ranking |
| Alex de Minaur | 25 | 15-8 | No.10 | No.342 |
| Alexei Popyrin | 25 | 2-2 | No.28 | No.871 |
| Jordan Thompson | 30 | 9-5 | No.32 | No.13 |
| Max Purcell | 26 | 7-3 | No.97 | No.18 |
| Matt Ebden | 35 | 11-2 | – | No.3 |
| Captain: Lleyton Hewitt | ||||
Thanasi Kokkinakis has also travelled to Valencia with the team and could still be elevated into the line-up.
The Aussies begin their campaign tomorrow against a French team spearheaded by world No.17 Ugo Humbert and world No.24 Arthur Fils.
| Davis Cup Finals 2024 Round-robin stage Australia’s schedule |
||
| Date | Opponent | Head-to-head record |
| 10 September | France | Australia lead 12-5 |
| 12 September | Czech Republic | Australia lead 9-1 |
| 15 September | Spain | Australia lead 4-1 |
Australia needs to finish among the top-two nations in Group B to progress to the knockout quarterfinal stage.
The Davis Cup Finals will be broadcast live in Australia on the Nine Network. Coverage of the first tie against France begins at 12am AEST on Wednesday 11 September.
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