The Davis Cup will dominate the tennis landscape this weekend and despite all the pessimism around the oldest team event in tennis, some of the biggest names in the men’s game are set to represent their nations around the world.
The competition has been notable for the number of high-profile players opting out of playing in recent years, but that trend is being bucked over the next few days and most of the first choice players have decided to play in what should be tense ties.
This weekend’s qualifiers are split into two rounds, played as two-day, home-or-away ties over the best-of-five-matches format, and determine which nations reach the prestigious season-ending Davis Cup Final 8 in Bologna.
Twenty-six nations contested the last round of matches in February, with the field comprising beaten sides from the previous year’s Final 8 and qualifiers, as well as promoted teams from World Group I.
The 13 winning nations moved on to the qualifiers second round, which takes place over the next few days.
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Joining them is wildcard Spain, entering at this stage by virtue of reaching last year’s Davis Cup final, but they do not have Carlos Alcaraz in their line-up.
Alcaraz has expressed a desire to win the Davis Cup for Spain at some point in his career, but he has opted out of their tie against Chile in Santiago as he managed his appearances after making a return to tennis at the US Open after a four-month lay-off due to a wrist injury.
Rafael Jodar, Daniel Merida, Jaume Munar, Martin Landaluce and Pedro Martinez make up the Spain side for a tie that will be played on clay courts, with Alejandro Tabilo, Cristian Garin, Tomas Barrios Vera and Matias Soto selected for Chile.
One surprise name in this weekend’s Davis Cup line-up is newly crowned US Open champion Alexander Zverev, who has flown back from New York to play in Germany’s tie against Croatia in Halle alongside Yannick Hanfmann, Tim Puetz and Kevin Krawietz.
Germany coach Michael Kohlmann may have been expecting a call from Zverev to confirm he wanted to take a break after his US Open win, but he has arrived to play the tie and is a huge addition to their line-up.
Beaten US Open finalist Ben Shelton has also stayed true to his word to play for Bob Bryan’s USA team, as they take on a powerful Czechia team in Prague.
Jiri Lehecka, Jakub Mensik, Vit Kopriva, Patrik Rikl and Adam Pavlasek will line up for the home side, with Shelton joined by Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul, Ethan Quinn and Christian Harrison on the USA team.
Felix Auger-Aliassime is playing for Canada in their tie against France and Wimbledon semi-finalist Arthur Fery will play for Great Britain in their tie against Ecuador in London.
It is a cast list of star names that offers a major boost to the Davis Cup after it was downgraded in the eyes of many big names in recent years, with some critics even questioning whether the competition has a place in the modern game.
The Davis Cup is a competition that began in 1900 as a competition between USA and Great Britain and has grown to become the world’s largest annual international team competition in sport, with 157 nations entering last year.
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Italy defended the Davis Cup title they won in 2024 on home soil in the finals staged in Bologna last year, despite world No 1 Jannik Sinner opting out of playing in their decisive ties.
Sinner is currently on his way back from the knee injury that ruled him out of the US Open, but he appears to be gearing up for a comeback after recent footage posted on his social media channels suggested he was counting down to his return to action.
If Sinner is fit in the final weeks of the 2026 season, he may be tempted to make himself available to play for Italy in the Bologna finals in November, where he could meet his big rival Carlos Alcaraz, if Spain make it through to the final eight.
