“Novak Djokovic Eyes Davis Cup Return After 24th Grand Slam Win; Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic Excited about the Boost”
Following his remarkable 24th Grand Slam victory at the US Open, Novak Djokovic is contemplating a return to action in the Davis Cup this week. Djokovic’s Serbia team member, Miomir Kecmanovic, expressed enthusiasm about having the 36-year-old tennis legend back on the team, believing that Djokovic’s presence could provide a significant advantage.
Djokovic secured his latest Grand Slam title by defeating Daniil Medvedev 6-3, 7-6(5), 6-3 in New York, thereby matching Margaret Court’s record of 24 major singles titles. While Djokovic is scheduled to travel to Valencia to join the Serbian team for their Davis Cup Finals group stage matches against South Korea, Spain, and the Czech Republic, it is likely that he will participate in only the final two encounters.
Kecmanovic commented, “We can’t wait to have him for Friday. It definitely takes a little bit of the pressure off since he always carried the team so well. But our focus is to get through Tuesday, hopefully get the win and then start a little bit more relaxed on Friday.”
Meanwhile, Spain will be without Wimbledon champion Carlos Alcaraz when facing Serbia on Friday, as the 20-year-old decided to withdraw to recover after his U.S. Open semi-final defeat by Medvedev. Despite this setback, Spain’s captain, David Ferrer, expressed confidence in his team’s abilities and their potential to compete effectively.
The Davis Cup group stage commences with matches including Sweden vs. Chile, France vs. Switzerland, and the Netherlands vs. Finland, taking place across four cities: Bologna, Manchester, Valencia, and Split. The top two teams from each group will advance to the knockout rounds in Malaga, scheduled from November 21 to 26.
In the previous edition of the Davis Cup, defending champions Canada secured their first title in the men’s premier team event by defeating Australia in the final. This year, they are joined by the 12 winners of the 2023 qualifiers, which include Chile, Croatia, Czech Republic, Finland, France, Britain, South Korea, Netherlands, Serbia, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United States. Additionally, wild cards Italy and Spain are participating in the tournament.
