In the eventual semi-final, Captain Volandri’s Azzurri will face one of Andy Murray’s Great Britain and Novak Djokovic’s Serbia
The Netherlands will be the opponent in the quarterfinals of the Davis Cup Finals, scheduled in Malaga (Spain) from 21 to 26 November. This was decided by the draw carried out by the ITF at 12pm. In the eventual semi-final, Captain Volandri’s Azzurri will face one of Andy Murray’s Great Britain and Novak Djokovic’s Serbia, a challenge between two of the Fab Four. On the other side of the table, defending champions Canada will face Finland, while the surprising Czech Republic will face Australia.
Italy, be careful
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A draw undoubtedly favorable to the Azzurri, both for the match itself and for the subsequent phase of the event. Avoiding Great Britain and “leaving” it in the hands of Djokovic’s Serbia means freeing oneself, in the event of a semi-final, of at least one of the direct favorites to win the final, with a match, the one between the Balkans and the British, which promises to be very hot indeed. . But be careful with Holland. The Orange have demonstrated several times how dangerous they are in Davis and especially on very fast indoor surfaces. Paul Haarhuis’ team won a group where there were the USA and Croatia (who were hosts), with Tallon Griekspoor (number 24 in the world) and Botic van de Zandschulp (number 68) great protagonists: two who they know how to play tennis and despite not being among the top, they certainly don’t give away matches. Furthermore, they have nothing to lose, they are absolute underdogs and this, especially in Davis, is something absolutely not to be underestimated. To this, as mentioned before, is added a spectacular doubles player like Wesley Koolhof, number four in the world and among the best interpreters of the role, and if necessary also Jean-Julien Rojer, 42 years old and number 16 in the discipline.
volandri
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The words of the captain immediately after the draw: “We are proud to have qualified for the Final 8 in Malaga again this year. Our race towards the title will start from the Netherlands who did very well in the group stage, winning their group with merit: they are a very compact team, with a great double and adapt very well to fast surfaces, like the one seen in the Davis days. As far as we are concerned, in Bologna we demonstrated that we have an extremely competitive and combative team. Above all in the most difficult moments, the boys gave everything. We were able on the pitch – with pride, determination and a lot of quality – to overturn the prospects. Now comes the difficult but also the best. Regardless of who will be in Malaga, I am sure that the team will give a further demonstration of compactness. We will be ready and as always we will give our best, with the aim of bringing back to Italy a trophy that has been missing for too long.”
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