Davis Cup: Team-by-team guide and best bets for team tennis competition

Tennis betting tips: Davis Cup

1pt Serbia to win the Davis Cup at 5/1 (Sky Bet)

0.5pt e.w. Canada to win the Davis Cup at 33/1 (Sky Bet)

2pts Great Britain to win Group D at 5/4 (Sky Bet)

1.5pts Germany to win Group C at 13/8 (Sky Bet)

1pt Serbia to win Group B at 100/30 (Sky Bet)

Sky Bet odds | Paddy Power | Betfair Sportsbook

You remember the Davis Cup, right?

The competition which Andy Murray famously helped Great Britain win in 2015 and the one which saw a crowd of 27,000 watch Roger Federer claim the trophy for Switzerland.

It was an event cherished by fans but also one much maligned by players and, seemingly, some officials too.

When the money men – Gerard Pique’s Kosmos group – arrived at the International Tennis Federation’s door, the competition’s soul was sold with the famous home-and-away ties largely scrapped in favour of an 11-day Finals event, bringing the world’s best nations together in one place, a la football’s World Cup.

Part of the reason given was that players didn’t want to commit to ties sprinkled throughout the season, as the previous format asked of them, while organisers went big on the ‘World Cup of Tennis’ format of gathering all the teams in one place.

To be fair, it was not without logic.

But, just three years after the inaugural Davis Cup Finals were held in Madrid, the competition is now split between a variety of cities, while there’s the potential for the eventual champions to have played ties in March, September and November. Sound familiar?

It’s a pretty sad situation for what was once a hugely prestigious event.

Still, it is what it is and, looking solely at the here and now, there’s certainly potential for an exciting six days of tennis this week – it all starts on Tuesday.

What we’ve got are 16 teams, split into four groups. Each group will be played in a different European city, although all will be played indoors on the same Greenset surface, one which played fairly slow last year.

The top two in each will progress to November’s knockout stage in Malaga.

As far as each individual tie is concerned, there are two singles rubbers followed by a potentially decisive doubles.

In terms of betting, we can look at the group qualification scenarios – Sky Bet have group winners and ‘to qualify’ markets – while now is also a time to consider who might emerge victorious in southern Spain at the end of the season.

Let’s start by looking at each team…

GROUP A (Bologna)

Croatia

Croatia’s squad looks pretty decent. Marin Cilic and Borna Coric both enjoyed some good results on the North American hardcourts and should play singles. They also have a specialist doubles team in Nikola Mektic and Mate Pavic, who are regular partners on the ATP Tour (they sit fourth in the season-long ‘race’). Those two could be crucial.

Argentina

The problem with Argentina is most of their players are being taken out of their natural environment, namely claycourts. As a result, much will rest of the shoulders of Diego Schwartzman but he’s not been at his best this season and, in any case, will need support. This team would be a handful on clay in their homeland but the Finals format doesn’t work for them.

Italy

Strong squad; home advantage – Italy should ease through to the Finals. In Jannik Sinner and Matteo Berrettini, they have two of the world’s top 15 singles players, while Fabio Fognini and Simone Bolelli have won a Grand Slam title in doubles as a pair. The only real worry for potential backers is how fatigued will Sinner and Berrettini be after their US Open efforts – both made it to the quarter-finals in New York.

Sweden

A Davis Cup powerhouse in the days of Mats Wilander and Stefan Edberg, modern-day Sweden are a long way from such heights. The Ymer brothers, Mikael and Elias, may be able to notch an upset or two across the week but it’s hard to see this squad having enough to finish in the top two.

Group verdict

As long as Sinner and Berrettini are OK, Italy should win this group with few problems. I’d expect Croatia to follow them through to the last eight. Argentina could push them but, in these conditions, I favour the Croats.

GROUP B (Valencia)

Spain

Initially, Spain looked bankers in this group but it’s not been the best lead-in for captain Sergi Bruguera. Both Pablo Carreno Busta and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina have withdrawn injured, while Rafael Nadal wasn’t in the team in the first place. Carlos Alcaraz does remain but the newly-crowned (and fatigued) US Open champion isn’t due in Valencia until Tuesday so surely won’t play in their opening tie. The stand-ins could still deliver but they shouldn’t be 4/9 to win this pool.

South Korea

The Koreans look weak with only Soonwoo Kwon anywhere near tour-level class. He can’t win ties on his own though and it’s hard to see where their other points are going to come from. Frankly, qualifying for this stage has been an achievement.

Serbia

Novak Djokovic’s withdrawal for “personal reasons” is a blow to Serbia’s chances but not a fatal one. Far from it. Miomir Kecmanovic is enjoying a decent season, while Filip Krajinovic enjoys indoor conditions. There’s also Laslo Djere and Dusan Lajovic to call upon. Serbia will still fancy their chances of qualifying for the knockout stage.

Canada

When Canada announced their team without their top two in it, they looked very much like also-rans in this group. But Felix Auger-Aliassime has now opted to play and that will give them hope. However, with Denis Shapovalov not here, there still looks a lot on FAA’s young shoulders. Vasek Pospisil helped Canada reach the 2019 final but he’s not in anything like the form he was then.

Group verdict

When the teams were announced last month, Spain and SERBIA looked locks for the quarter-finals but now Canada look in a much stronger position to cause an upset. The ‘big two’ will probably still progress but it won’t be easy and Spain certainly look too short in the betting. Serbia’s team may lack star appeal without Djokovic but it’s still a solid line-up and one which could win this pool at a decent price of 11/4.

• CLICK HERE to back Serbia to win Group B with Sky Bet

GROUP C (Hamburg)

France

The French are the top seeds in what looks set to be the most competitive group but they are weaker now than they have been for years. The absence of their top singles player, Gael Monfils, hardly helps matters. Still, they are not without hope with the likes of Adrian Mannarino, Benjamin Bonzi and Richard Gasquet in their ranks, while Nicolas Mahut provides doubles expertise and bucketloads of experience.

Germany

World number five Alex Zverev is aiming to be back in action for the group hosts but even if he is fit, the fact is he’s not played since leaving the French Open in wheelchair in June. This group isn’t the best place to be testing out your fitness and so it would be no great surprise were Oscar Otte and Jan-Lennard Struff to be chosen for singles. Neither is a bad option. Tim Puetz and Kevin Krawietz give the Germans a strong-looking doubles partnership – they starred at last year’s event, helping the Germans reach the semis.

Australia

There will be no Nick Kyrgios in Hamburg and that leaves a lot on the shoulders of Alex de Minaur, who is probably going to need Thanasi Kokkinakis to step up – in singles and doubles – if the Aussies are to progress to the last eight.

Belgium

David Goffin leads the 2015 runners-up but, again, he’ll need support. Perhaps Zizou Bergs can provide it. He’s shown his talent over the last 18 months with several titles on the second-tier Challenger Tour.

Group verdict

The layers have Australia are the favourites here but they look like they can be taken on. With home advantage, GERMANY’s players may well step up and, perhaps crucially, they’ve got a strong doubles pairing. They are the preference here – they are 13/8 to win the group – although France should not be discounted either and will doubtless have their backers at 11/4.

• CLICK HERE to back Germany to win Group C with Sky Bet

GROUP D (Glasgow)

USA

The withdrawal of US Open semi-finalist Frances Tiafoe is a big blow for the USA. He’s not been replaced in the team which now lacks options and looks very vulnerable to an injury. Taylor Fritz and Tommy Paul are all-but-certain to play singles, with Jack Sock and Rajeev Ram the set doubles pair. If all goes well, USA should be fine and make progress but it won’t take much for it to go wrong.

Great Britain

For years people bemoaned the lack of depth in British tennis but that’s changed. They’ll have three of the singles top 50 to choose from here, including top-10er Cameron Norrie, who has been a great form this summer. In addition, Joe Salisbury and Neal Skupski are two of the world’s top three in doubles. Add in home advantage, and GB should be booking a ticket to Malaga.

Kazakhstan

The Kazakhs have punched above their weight in this competition for years and are not without hope in the 2022 edition. They’ll be led by Alexander Bublik, a player whose serve always makes him dangerous, albeit conditions seems unlikely to help his game. The likes of Mikhail Kukushkin have often stepped up to deliver crucial points in the past so the more favoured sides in the group would do well not to underestimate this bunch.

Netherlands

The layers won’t expect the Dutch to progress but, like Kazakhstan, they are lively outsiders. Botic van de Zandschulp, Tim van Rijthoven and Tallon Griekspoor will be no pushovers in singles and in doubles they have a good player in Matwe Middelkoop, although the withdrawal of world number four Wesley Koolhof is a blow.

Group verdict

GREAT BRITAIN and USA are 5/4 joint favourites to win this section but I fancy the hosts, whose greater depth can see them home. For those willing to take a risk, the Dutch offer hope. Theirs is not a bad squad with players capable of landing an upset or two.

• CLICK HERE to back Great Britain to win Group D with Sky Bet

TOURNAMENT VERDICT

As I said at the start, now is the time to take a look at the outright market, albeit it’s hard to find a great bet.

Spain are the favourites at 4/1 which does make sense.

If they progress to the quarter-finals, they will almost certainly be able to put out a stronger team with Nadal, Carreno Busta and Davidovich Fokina all possible returnees for a week during which they’ll have home advantage.

However, I’m really not sure Nadal will play in late November given how his body has treated him this season and despite ‘to qualify’ quotes of 1/10 I’m hardly convinced Spain are locks for the last eight given the problems facing them this week.

The same could be said about SERBIA but I do expect them to progress and they’ll likely have Novak Djokovic available again come November.

• CLICK HERE to back Serbia with Sky Bet

He’s been passionate about Davis Cup in the past, winning the trophy in 2010, and regularly making himself available for both singles and doubles duty.

The Serbs have been close in the last two editions of this tournament, being edged out in doubles in the 2019 quarter-finals (v Russia) and the 2021 semis (v Croatia), while they did win the ATP Cup team event in 2020.

I’d expect them to go close again.

There are eight teams at 9/1 or shorter so it’s very competitive and it’s not hard to make a case for the likes of Italy (5/1) or last year’s runners-up Croatia (9/1).

However, one price which catches the eye from further down the list is the 33/1 about CANADA.

• CLICK HERE to back Canada with Sky Bet

OK, they’ve got a fight on their hands to get through to the knockout stage this week but if they do make it – and with Felix Auger-Aliassime back in the fold they have a chance – then 33/1 is going to look very big come November.

Auger-Aliassime may well be able to link back up with Denis Shapovalov by then and the duo won this season’s ATP Cup which is played in a similar format.

It’s a punt which could well go wrong so keep stakes small.

Overall, the outright market doesn’t look the greatest so I’ll instead save most of this week’s stakes for the group markets – a full summary of the recommendations coming at the top of this page.

Posted at 1315 BST on 12/09/22

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