Is it true, as we hear so often, that Davis Cup doesn’t draw the biggest stars in the men’s game? That depends on whether you have a glass-half-full or glass-half-empty view of the world. This weekend, six of the ATP’s Top 10, and two of its Big 4, will play for their countries. That can’t compare to a Grand Slam, of course, but being a Cup-half-full type of fan myself, I’d say it’s a pretty good ratio.

Not that it really matters; stars aren’t why tennis fans follow Davis Cup. This weekend it’s about everything else: Teams, nations, doubles, coaches, marathon matches, Thunderstix and, of course, drama—no matter who’s playing, Davis Cup always delivers that. With eight first-round ties, this weekend will be tennis’ version of March Madness. Here are five things to look for over the next three days.

Advertising

The Big 2 Are in the Building

Above I mentioned that two of the Big 4 will be in action; they also happen to be the No. 1 and 2 players in the world at the moment. Novak Djokovic will lead Serbia against Kazakhstan; Andy Murray will do the same for Great Britain against Japan. Neither was a lock to play: Djokovic retired with an eye infection last week in Dubai, while Murray is returning after the birth of his daughter and a month away from the tour. The fact that these ties will be played in their home countries probably helped. Would Murray have gone to Japan? Would Djokovic have gone to Kazakhstan? The points are moot now. Djokovic will open against 200th-ranked Aleksandr Nedovyesov on an indoor hard court in Belgrade on Friday, and for the moment he’s also listed in the doubles, with Nenad Zimonjic. Murray will start against 87th-ranked Taro Daniel on an indoor hard court in Birmingham; for the moment he’s not scheduled to play doubles with his brother, Jamie, on Saturday. Whether Andy does play dubs or not, the tie’s critical match—and the blockbuster of the DC weekend—will likely be his singles rubber against Kei Nishikori on Sunday.

Advertising

Let the March Madness Begin

Let the March Madness Begin

Rusty Returns

So much for Lleyton Hewitt’s retirement; it lasted all of a month. With Nick Kyrgios unable to play due to a back injury, Hewitt, Australia’s captain, has made himself available to play against the U.S. this weekend in Melbourne. Rusty isn’t in the lineup yet; for now Sam Groth and Bernard Tomic are listed to play singles, and Groth and John Peers are scheduled for doubles. But that could easily change, considering the big-serving Groth opens against the almost-as-big-serving John Isner in a match that might take half a day to finish. (Davis Cup's new fifth-set tiebreaker came just in time.) With Groth also scheduled for the potential deciding rubber versus Jack Sock, it may make sense for Hewitt to send himself in against the Bryan brothers in doubles. Even without Hewitt, this tie between the two all-time Cup-winning teams should be fun: It’s on grass at the Kooyong Club, the former site of the Australian Open, and will pit Tomic versus Isner and Sock. (For U.S. fans, the tie will begin Thursday evening on the Tennis Channel.)

L’Equipe de Rêve

According to Google Translate, the above phrase is how you say “dream team” in French. The country, which last won the Davis Cup in 2001, appears to be fielding one for its first-round home tie against Canada. Captain Yannick Noah will bring No. 9 Jo-Wilfried Tsonga, No. 10 Richard Gasquet, No. 17 Gael Monfils and No. 19 Gilles Simon with him to Guadeloupe. It may be hard to find a first-class doubles team among those four, but on paper—and on this tie’s surface, red clay—it makes for a formidable singles lineup against anyone, especially a Canadian team that will be without its No. 1, Milos Raonic, who is recovering from an adductor injury.

Advertising

Let the March Madness Begin

Let the March Madness Begin

Alexander the New

Every player says it: There’s nothing like hearing your country’s name, rather than your own, when the score is announced in Davis Cup. Eighteen-year-old Alexander Zverev will have that experience for the first time on Friday, when he plays the second singles rubber for Germany in Hanover. It will be a trial by fire for Zverev, as he goes up against the Czech Republic’s No. 1, Tomas Berdych. The two played a close three-setter, which Berdych won, on a similar indoor surface last month. It’s possible that Zverev could also be the young man on the spot if there’s a fifth rubber. As of now, he’s scheduled to face Lukas Rosol in the decider on Sunday.

Swiss Miss

How the recently mighty have fallen. Switzerland won the Davis Cup a scant 15 months ago; now, two seasons later, it faces a new campaign without either of the players, Roger Federer and Stan Wawrinka, who led it to that title. Instead, 146th-ranked Marco Chiudinelli and 174th-ranked Henri Laaksonen will take the Swiss into a clay-court battle in Pesaro against the home Italian team.

This being Davis Cup, don’t be surprised if it’s the most dramatic tie of the weekend.