Novak Djokovic and Serbia’s chances of defeating Great Britain in the Davis Cup quarter-finals received a boost. Andy Murray announced his withdrawal from the Final 8 stage of the event following an injury in training. His replacement is yet to be announced, and Serbia will now fancy their chances to progress without much difficulty.
Murray played and won one singles fixture in the group stage in September. He beat Switzerland’s Leandro Riedi as Great Britain won the tie 2-1. The island nation topped Group B with a perfect 3-0 record. Murray did not feature against France and Australia. He was set to play a bigger role in the Final 8 stage.
Murray recently announced that he suffered a right shoulder injury in a training session (via The Times). The injury is reportedly minor, but the 36-year-old prefers to rehabilitate and get himself in the best shape for the upcoming season. He had recently revealed his desire to play one more Olympics before retiring. Hence, Murray decided to pull out from the Davis Cup Final 8 stage. He was pegged to face Djokovic in the singles clash but the Serb and his country face a much easier path into the semi-finals.
The Great Britain squad was already weakened by the withdrawal of Dan Evans, who had displayed great form in the group stage. Djokovic had picked him to be the biggest threat to Serbia’s chances. Murray provided a great backup option to Evans and British No.1 Cameron Norrie for singles. But now, Great Britain has lost two of their primary singles options. Not only that, Murray’s experience will also be a big miss for a much-weakened British squad.
Norrie and 21-year-old World No. 61 Jack Draper remain the only singles options in the Great Britain team. Djokovic and Serbia’s chances of making it to the semi-finals have increased dramatically after Murray’s withdrawal. The 2010 champions will look to dominate Norrie and company and advance without breaking a sweat.
Novak Djokovic will not let his ATP Finals journey affect his Davis Cup form for Serbia
Like Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic also featured in one singles clash for his country in the Davis Cup Finals group stage. He beat Alejandro Davidovich Fokina when Serbia faced Spain in their second tie. The Eastern European nation finished second in Group C with a 2-1 record. Their only loss came to group winners Czechia. In their final clash against Czechia, he paired up with Nikola Cacic to play doubles but lost.
Djokovic played two fixtures despite having lifted the 2023 US Open just a few days before. The 24-time Grand Slam champion is currently in Turin for the ATP Finals. He will play a more active role in the Final 8 stage despite his participation in the year-end championship.
The Davis Cup is the next event on his schedule. The potential match-up against Murray in the quarter-finals would have been the biggest attraction of the tie, but unfortunately, it is not to be. If they beat Great Britain, they will face either Italy or Netherlands in the semi-finals. Regardless of who he faces, Djokovic will want to play an integral role and help Serbia lift their second title.
