The draw ceremony for the 2018 Davis Cup World Group took place on Wednesday, not long after the 16 qualifying nations were confirmed this past weekend. In addition to the eight countries who earned their spots with first-round wins in 2017, eight teams battled their way through the recent World Group Playoffs.
Among the first-round showdowns is Great Britain vs. Spain, with the latter hold home-court advantage and sure to force the Brits onto red clay. A meeting between Andy Murray and Rafael Nadal is possible, although Davis Cup weekend will begin less than a week after the conclusion of the 2018 Australian Open. Murray will be making a comeback from his hip injury, while Nadal may be fatigued after what current form–albeit four months in advance–suggests will be a long fortnight Down Under.
As the two finalists in 2017, France and Belgium are the respective top two seeds next year. The Frenchmen, who are hosting this season’s championship tie in late November, are schedule to welcome the Netherlands to town. David Goffin and the Belgians can look forward to visiting a surprising Hungarian side.
Other ties include Italy at Japan, Germany at Australia, Switzerland at Kazakhstan, Canada at Croatia, and the United States at Serbia. Australia and Serbia suffered recent semifinal defeats at the hands of Belgium and France, respectively.
Full draw at the Davis Cup website
impossible to tell who has a tough draw until we find out what players are playing