March 12, 2020 - 12:27 PM
Canada has been drawn into a round-robin group with Kazakhstan and Sweden for the Davis Cup Finals.
The international men's tennis tournament will take place Nov. 23-29 at Madrid's Caja Magica.
The Canadians have yet to face Kazakhstan in Davis Cup play. Sweden won its only meeting with Canada 3-2 in 1992. The five-match series that featured a stunning upset when Toronto's Daniel Nestor shocked then-world No. 1 Stefan Edberg.
Canada, led largely by Vancouver's Vasek Pospisil and Denis Shapovalov of Richmond Hill, Ont., advanced to the final of last year's tournament before losing to Rafael Nadal and host Spain.
"We are looking forward to competing in the Davis Cup Finals for a second consecutive year," Canadian captain Frank Dancevic said following Thursday's draw in London. "Although we are seeded for this year's event, we know that we have a tough task ahead as all of the teams who are set to compete have strong lineups.
"As we saw last year, any nation can cause an upset because the calibre of play is so high. Our players will be ready to compete and are excited for the challenge that lies ahead."
Eighteen teams were drawn into six round-robin groups. The winners of the groups, along with the two next best teams, will qualify for the quarterfinals. Each of these match-ups will consist of two singles matches and a doubles match, all played as a best of three sets.
Canada is in Group B. The other groups are:
Group A — Ecuador, Russia, Spain
Group C — Britain, Czech Republic, France
Group D — Australia, Croatia, Hungary
Group E — Colombia, Italy. United States
Group F — Austria, Germany, Serbia
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 12, 2020.
News from © The Canadian Press, 2020