The Davis Cup World Group semifinal between Great Britain and Australia will begin on Friday on the indoor hard courts of Glasgow. Andy Murray is opening against Thanasi Kokkinakis before Dan Evans faces Bernard Tomic.
Andy Murray (GBR) vs. Thanasi Kokkinakis (AUS)
Two good friends and frequent training partners will go head-to-head for the first time when Murray and Kokkinakis kick off the Great Britain vs. Australia Davis Cup semifinal tie on Friday in Glasgow. Both players are looking to bounce back from relatively disappointing U.S. Open campaigns. Murray had been in outstanding form with a title in Montreal and a semifinal showing in Cincinnati. Expected to go up against Roger Federer in a semifinal showdown at Flushing Meadows, the third-ranked Scot instead lost to Kevin Anderson in a fourth-round upset. Still, Murray is a stellar 59-10 on the season and a perfect 4-0 in Davis Cup singles rubbers.
Kokkinakis got dragged into the Nick Kyrgios-Stan Warinka controversy during the Montreal Masters, but he did not let it affect him in Cincinnati. The world No. 72 qualified for the main draw there and ousted Fabio Fognini before succumbing to Richard Gasquet. Kokkinakis also went up against Gasquet in the U.S. Open first round and pushed the Frenchman to five sets before retiring with cramps. The 19-year-old is 1-1 in Davis Cup this year; he came back from two sets down to beat Lukas Rosol on the road in the Czech Republic but lost during quarterfinal action at home to Kazakhstan’s Mikhail Kukushkin. An away date with Murray will obviously be Kokkinakis’ toughest Davis Cup test yet.
Pick: Murray in 3 with at least 1 tiebreaker
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Dan Evans (GBR) vs. Bernard Tomic (AUS)
The Australia Davis Cup team has played some musical chairs in recent seasons, and Tomic has beena a big reason for the ongoing uncertainty due to both inconsistent play on the court and questionable behavior off it. Almost the same can be said for Kyrgios. It was Kyrgios who got the call for the Davis Cup quarterfinals against Kazakhstan, but now Tomic is on the squad while Kyrgios is absent. The 22-year-old is in strong enough form, up to a career-high ranking of 23rd in the world. He outlasted Australian teammate Lleyton Hewitt’s U.S. Open career after a five-set thriller then lost to Gasquet in the third round.
Evans is 1-0 lifetime against Tomic, having prevailed 1-6, 6-3, 7-6(4), 6-3 at the 2013 U.S. Open. But the 25-year-old has since disappeared from the main tour. In fact, he has not won an ATP-level match since Queen’s Club in 2014 and he has not even played in an ATP tournament this season. Registering at exactly 300th in the world, Evans has been grinding away on the Futures and Challenger circuits and has three Futures titles to his credit this year. Although he is finally playing with some confidence again, this is a substantial step up in competition for Evans.
Pick: Tomic in 4
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