Kokkinakis to open Aust Davis Cup campaign

Captain Wally Masur pulls a surprise by naming Thanasi Kokkinakis, the world No.133, to open Australia's Davis Cup tie against the Czech Republic.

Thanasi Kokkinakis and Lukas Rosol will open the Davis Cup first-round tie between Australia and the Czech Republic in the eastern Czech city of Ostrava on Friday.

Australia captain Wally Masur pulled a surprise when he named Kokkinakis, the world No.133, overlooking far more experienced Lleyton Hewitt and Sam Groth.

The 18-year-old rising star will play his second Davis Cup rubber against 31st-ranked Rosol, who is eleven years older.

Australia's spearhead Bernard Tomic, the world No.38, was drawn on Thursday to face 45th-ranked Jiri Vesely in the opening day's second singles rubber.

In Saturday's doubles, the hosts' Jan Mertl and Adam Pavlasek are due to play against Groth and Hewitt, but the Czech team will most likely change.

Both teams are without their top players as Czech No.1 Tomas Berdych has decided to skip the tie to focus on his singles career while teammate Radek Stepanek and Australia's Nick Kyrgios are injured.

History favours Australia who have won six out of seven ties against the Czech Republic or its predecessor Czechoslovakia.

In their last tie, Australia trounced the Czechs 5-0 in the 1997 quarter-finals in Adelaide.

Australia have won the Davis Cup 28 times - second only behind the United States with 32 wins - but its last title dates back to 2003.

The Czechs lifted the trophy in 2012 and 2013, three decades after the former Czechoslovakia won in 1980 with a team led by then 20-year-old Ivan Lendl.

Czechoslovakia split into the Czech Republic and Slovakia in 1993, four years after shedding its totalitarian Communist rule of four decades.

In the 2014 edition, both rivals lost to France - Australia in the first round and the Czech Republic in the semi-finals.


Share

2 min read

Published

Updated

Source: AAP


Share this with family and friends


Get SBS News daily and direct to your Inbox

Sign up now for the latest news from Australia and around the world direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to SBS’s terms of service and privacy policy including receiving email updates from SBS.

Download our apps
SBS News
SBS Audio
SBS On Demand

Listen to our podcasts
An overview of the day's top stories from SBS News
Interviews and feature reports from SBS News
Your daily ten minute finance and business news wrap with SBS Finance Editor Ricardo Gonçalves.
A daily five minute news wrap for English learners and people with disability
Get the latest with our News podcasts on your favourite podcast apps.

Watch on SBS
SBS World News

SBS World News

Take a global view with Australia's most comprehensive world news service
Watch the latest news videos from Australia and across the world