Murray & del Potro Headline Friday Davis Cup Play

Andy Murray will put his 14-match Davis Cup winning streak on the line against Juan Martin del Potro, as the Brits hosts the Argentines for their semi-final tie on an indoor hard court in Glasgow this weekend. Leon Smith, the captain of the home team, has selected Kyle Edmund to the other singles slot. The #NextGen star will take on Argentinian No. 1 Guido Pella in the second match of the day.

The first rubber pits the World No. 2 Murray against del Potro, who is putting together a remarkable campaign after coming back from left wrist surgery. The pair most recently played in the final of the Rio Olympics, with Murray taking gold.

“It will be a very tough match. We obviously had a great battle in Rio. It was four hours, lots of ups and downs, a lot of momentum shifts and was mentally and physically a very draining match,” Murray told DavisCup.com. “I think both of us were pretty tired afterwards, and emotional. I think that showed in how we were right after the final point. It will be another intense atmosphere here and I’m looking forward to it.”

Del Potro has not played singles in Davis Cup since 2012, but holds a 12-4 record. All four of his losses have come on indoor courts. Murray is 29-2 when representing his country in singles.

Edmund narrowly lost to Pella in their most recent meeting and is eager to make amends in front of his home crowd.

“I’m obviously excited whoever I was going to play in the Davis Cup, it’s always an honour to represent your country. I’ve enjoyed the last two ties I’ve played in and had great experiences from it,” the Brit told DavisCup.com. “In terms of playing Pella, I lost 7-5 in the third set [in Indian Wells]. It was a close match. I’m sure he has improved since then. I’ve definitely improved since then, got a lot of experience and I feel my game has improved. I think what I have been doing the last few months and the run I’ve got on, it’s just trying to replicate that.”

In the other semi-final tie, France will look to take down home team Croatia on an indoor hard court in Zadar. The French are without Gael Monfils and Jo-Wilfried Tsonga due to injuries, while Croatian No. 2 Borna Coric admitted to feeling less than 100 per cent due to problems with his knee. The #NextGen star will play the first rubber against French No. 1 Richard Gasquet.

“My preparations for the tie have been less than ideal because my knee flared up after the Olympic Games in Rio,” Coric told DavisCup.com. “I made the most of the last few days and we will see how it goes. I have never played against Gasquet so I have some homework to do in order to come up with the right game-plan.”

Top Croatian Marin Cilic will contest the second rubber against rising star Lucas Pouille, who is coming off a quarter-final showing at the US Open.

World Group Playoffs: Nadal To Lead Spaniards; Nishikori Gets A Day Off

In World Group play-off action, Rafael Nadal made the trip to India in an attempt to help Spain return to the World Group for the first time since 2014. He will face Indian No. 2 Ramkumar Ramanathan in the opening rubber, while David Ferrer will play Saketh Myneni in the second rubber. Nadal has not lost a Davis Cup singles match since falling in straight sets to Jiri Novak of the Czech Republic 12 years ago. He is 21-0 since.

Kei Nishikori, the top Japanese player in the Emirates ATP Rankings, will not play on Day 1 of the home team’s play-off tie against Ukraine. Instead, Taro Daniel will play Artem Smirnov while #NextGen player Yoshihito Nishioka will face Illya Marchenko, who lost to eventual champion Stan Wawrinka at the US Open.

Elsewhere, Nick Kyrgios and Bernard Tomic will both feature on Day 1 for Australia against Slovakia. The Swiss, sans Wawrinka and Roger Federer, are in Tashkent to take on Uzbekistan. David Goffin and the Belgians host Thomaz Bellucci and Brazil in Ostend. Frank Dancevic and Vasek Pospisil look to fend off Chile in Halifax, Canada. Russia faces Kazakhstan in Mosow, and Germany hosts Poland in Berlin.