2015 Davis Cup

2015 Davis Cup
Details
Duration 6 March – 29 November
Edition 104th
Achievements (singles)
2014
2016

The 2015 Davis Cup was the 104th edition of the Davis Cup, a tournament between national teams in men's tennis. It was sponsored by BNP Paribas. Great Britain won their tenth title (their first since 1936), with Andy Murray defeating David Goffin of Belgium on clay in the final match held at Flanders Expo located in Ghent on 29 November 2015.

World Group

Participating teams

Argentina

Australia

Belgium

Brazil

Canada

Croatia

Czech Republic

France

Germany

Great Britain

Italy

Japan

Kazakhstan

Serbia

Switzerland

United States

Seeds

  1.  France (Quarterfinals)
  2.   Switzerland (First round)
  3.  Czech Republic (First round)
  4.  Serbia (Quarterfinals)
  5.  Argentina (Semifinals)
  6.  Italy (First round)
  7.  United States (First round)
  8.  Canada (Quarterfinals)

Draw

  First round
6–8 March
Quarterfinals
17–19 July
Semifinals
18–20 September
Final
27–29 November
                                     
Frankfurt, Germany (indoor hard)
1   France 3  
London, Great Britain (grass)
  Germany 2  
  1   France 1  
Glasgow, Great Britain (indoor hard)
    Great Britain 3  
7   United States 2
Glasgow, Great Britain (indoor hard)
  Great Britain 3  
    Great Britain 3  
Ostrava, Czech Republic (indoor hard)
    Australia 2  
3   Czech Republic 2  
Darwin, Australia (grass)
  Australia 3  
    Australia 3
Astana, Kazakhstan (indoor hard)
    Kazakhstan 2  
6   Italy 2
Ghent, Belgium (indoor clay)
  Kazakhstan 3  
    Great Britain 3
Buenos Aires, Argentina (clay)
    Belgium 1
  Brazil 2  
Buenos Aires, Argentina (indoor clay)
5   Argentina 3  
  5   Argentina 4
Kraljevo, Serbia (indoor hard)
  4   Serbia 1  
  Croatia 0
Brussels, Belgium (indoor hard)
4   Serbia 5  
  5   Argentina 2
Vancouver, Canada (indoor hard)
    Belgium 3  
  Japan 2  
Middelkerke, Belgium (clay)
8   Canada 3  
  8   Canada 0
Liège, Belgium (indoor hard)
    Belgium 5  
  Belgium 3
2    Switzerland 2  

Final

Belgium and Great Britain won through to the final by winning semi-final ties against Argentina and Australia respectively.[1] This meant that Belgium would participate in their first Davis Cup final since 1904 (a 50 defeat against Great Britain), and Great Britain in their first since 1978.[2][3] It also marked a remarkable recovery in fortunes for Great Britain, who had been in danger of relegation to the lowest division of the Davis Cup in 2010.[3]

Belgium were drawn as the home team under the rotation policy used by the organizers.[1] They chose to play the tie on a clay surface in the Flanders Expo, an indoor arena in Ghent.[1] The Belgians opted for a clay surface in the hope of unsettling Andy Murray, the highest ranked player on either side.[4] The choice of surface led Murray to question whether he would participate in the 2015 ATP World Tour Finals, played on a hard court in the week before the Davis Cup final, due to the difficulty in transitioning between surfaces.[1][4] Murray's comments led ITF executive president Chris Kermode to state that the Tour Finals was a mandatory event.[1][4] Murray participated in the finals, but was eliminated during the group stage.[5]

On the weekend before the tie, transport systems in the capital city of Brussels were shut down by the Belgian authorities due to security concerns relating to the recent attacks in Paris.[6] The British team delayed travelling to Belgium by 24 hours due to the security concerns, with the venue being located 35 km (22 mi) from Brussels.[6]

For his squad, Belgium captain Johan Van Herck selected Kimmer Coppejans, Ruben Bemelmans, Steve Darcis and David Goffin.[7] The team was led by Goffin, ranked 16th in the world and possessing a strong record in Davis Cup singles matches.[7] Their selection was relatively straightforward, as no other Belgian players possessed significant Davis Cup experience or were ranked in the top 200.[8] Great Britain captain Leon Smith named a five-man provisional squad of Murray, his brother Jamie, James Ward, Kyle Edmund and Dominic Inglot.[9] The team was led by Andy Murray, ranked second in the world and likely to play in the doubles match with his brother.[9] Smith later reduced the squad by omitting Inglot, a specialist doubles player who would only have been used if either Murray had been injured.[10]

Smith opted to use Edmund in the opening singles instead of Ward, due to his recent success in winning an ATP Challenger Tour event held on clay (the 2015 Copa Fila).[10] This meant that Edmund made his Davis Cup debut in the final, becoming only the sixth player in tournament history to make his debut in a final.[10] Edmund made a flying start to the first singles tie, racing into a two-set lead against Goffin by hitting many forehand winners.[11] Goffin fought back to win in five sets, winning 14 of the last 15 games.[11] Murray levelled the tie by winning in straight sets against Bemelmans.[11] Smith commented that it was the score that would have been expected after the first day, with the two higher-ranked players winning their matches.[11]

With the tie standing level after the first day, Belgian captain Van Herck gambled by selecting Goffin for the doubles (alongside Darcis) instead of Bemelmans.[8] This was an attempt to win the tie by winning the doubles and the two singles matches not contested by Andy Murray.[8] Van Herck also justified his decision by saying he felt they would have a better chance to win by playing from the back of the court, instead of playing a more typical doubles match at the net.[12] The tactic appeared to work, as the Belgian pair won the second set to level the match and then took an early lead in the third.[12] Darcis weakened later in the match and his serve was broken later in the third set, won 63 by the Murrays.[12] After Jamie survived seven break points on his serve midway through the fourth set, the Darcis serve was broken again.[12] Andy then closed out the victory, giving Great Britain a 21 lead.[12]

Going into the final day, Belgium hoped that Goffin would defeat Andy Murray and force the tie into a decisive fifth rubber.[12] The teams would then have faced an open choice of the other team members for that match, with Edmund nominally scheduled to play Bemelmans.[12] Goffin had only won one game in a recent meeting with Murray, but gave him a much harder match, which ran to almost three hours.[13] Murray survived a break point at 22 in the first set, but then raced to a 52 lead.[13] Goffin survived three set points on his own serve, but Murray then clinched the set in his next service game.[13] Goffin again resisted pressure on his own serve for most of the second set, but was broken in the 11th game.[13] Murray held serve to win the second set.[13] Goffin then fought back by breaking the Murray serve early in the third set, but was then immediately broken himself.[13] Murray then raced to victory, winning the match on his second match point with a backhand lob.[13] This gave Great Britain an unassailable 31 lead, with the two teams opting not to play the dead fifth rubber.[13]

The win was Great Britain's first Davis Cup victory since 1936, when Fred Perry and Bunny Austin contributed to a final win against Australia.[13] Andy Murray became only the third player, after John McEnroe and Mats Wilander, to win the maximum eight singles matches in a Davis Cup tournament.[13] With his three victories in doubles matches with his brother, he also became only the fourth man to win 11 points in a tournament.[13][14]

Summary


Belgium
1
Flanders Expo, Ghent, Belgium[15]
27–29 November 2015
Clay (i)

Great Britain
3
1 2 3 4 5
1 Belgium
United Kingdom
David Goffin
Kyle Edmund
3
6
1
6
6
2
6
1
6
0
 
2 Belgium
United Kingdom
Ruben Bemelmans
Andy Murray
3
6
2
6
5
7
     
3 Belgium
United Kingdom
Steve Darcis / David Goffin
Andy Murray / Jamie Murray
4
6
6
4
3
6
2
6
   
4 Belgium
United Kingdom
David Goffin
Andy Murray
3
6
5
7
3
6
     
5 Belgium
United Kingdom
Ruben Bemelmans
Kyle Edmund
          not
played

World Group Play-offs

Date: 18–20 September

The eight losing teams in the World Group, first round ties, and eight winners of the Zonal Group I final round ties competed in the World Group Play-offs for spots in the 2016 World Group.

Seeded teams

  1.  Czech Republic
  2.   Switzerland
  3.  Italy
  4.  United States
  5.  Japan
  6.  Germany
  7.  Croatia
  8.  Slovakia

Unseeded teams

Home team Score Visiting team Location Venue Door Surface
 India 1–3  Czech Republic New Delhi R.K. Khanna Tennis Complex Outdoor Hard
  Switzerland 4–1  Netherlands Geneva Palexpo Indoor Hard
 Russia 1–4  Italy Irkutsk Baikal Arena Indoor Hard
 Uzbekistan 1–3  United States Tashkent Olympic Tennis School Outdoor Clay
 Colombia 2–3  Japan Pereira Club Campestre Outdoor Clay
 Dominican Republic 1–4  Germany Santo Domingo Centro Nacional de Tenis del Parque del Este Outdoor Hard
 Brazil 1–3  Croatia Florianópolis Costão do Santinho Outdoor Clay
 Poland 3–2  Slovakia Gdynia Gdynia Sports Arena Indoor Hard

Americas Zone

Group I

For more details on this topic, see 2015 Davis Cup Americas Zone Group I.

Seeds: All seeds and Uruguay received a bye into the second round.

  1.  Colombia
  2.  Ecuador

Remaining nations:

Draw

  2nd round play-offs
30 October–1 November
1st round play-offs
18–20 September
1st round
6–8 March
2nd round
6–8 March/17–19 July
                                     
 
    1   Colombia  
     bye     Montevideo, Uruguay (clay)
   bye       1   Colombia 3
    Uruguay       Uruguay 2
    Uruguay
  Saint Michael, Barbados (hard)      bye  
    Uruguay 2  
    Barbados 3     Saint Michael, Barbados (hard)
      Barbados 2  
  Saint Michael, Barbados (hard)     Dominican Republic 3     Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic (clay)
  Barbados 2         Dominican Republic 3
  2   Ecuador 3     2   Ecuador 2
   bye
    2   Ecuador  
 Uruguay relegated to
Group II in 2016.
   Colombia and  Dominican Republic
advance to World Group Play-off.

Group II

For more details on this topic, see 2015 Davis Cup Americas Zone Group II.

Seeds:

  1.  Venezuela
  2.  Chile
  3.  Mexico
  4.  El Salvador

Remaining nations:

Draw

  Play-offs
17–19 July
1st round
6–8 March
2nd round
17–19 July
3rd round
18–20 September
                                     
  Caracas, Venezuela (hard)
    1   Venezuela 5  
  Bayamón, Puerto Rico (hard)     Costa Rica 0     Caracas, Venezuela (hard)
  Costa Rica 0       1   Venezuela 3  
  Puerto Rico 5   Humacao, Puerto Rico (hard)   4   El Salvador 2  
  4   El Salvador 3
      Puerto Rico 2     Santiago, Chile (clay)
    1   Venezuela 0
  Mérida, Mexico (hard)     2   Chile 5
      Bolivia 1  
  Lima, Peru (clay)   3   Mexico 3     Talcahuano, Chile (indoor clay)
  Bolivia 2       3   Mexico 0
  Peru 3   Santiago, Chile (clay)   2   Chile 5  
    Peru 0
    2   Chile 5  
 Costa Rica and  Bolivia
relegated to Group III in 2016.
   Chile promoted
to Group I in 2016.

Group III

Date: 20–25 July

Location: Panama City, Panama (clay)

Group A

Group B

7th place play-off

5th place play-off

Promotion play-off

 Paraguay and  Guatemala promoted to Group II in 2016.

Asia/Oceania Zone

Group I

For more details on this topic, see 2015 Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group I.

Seeds: All seeds received a bye into the second round.

  1.  Uzbekistan
  2.  India

Remaining nations:

Draw

  2nd round play-offs
18–20 September
1st round play-offs
1st round
6–8 March
2nd round
17–19 July
                                     
 
    1   Uzbekistan  
     bye     Tashkent, Uzbekistan (clay)
   bye       1   Uzbekistan 3
    Thailand   Nonthaburi, Thailand (hard)     South Korea 2
    South Korea 3
  Nonthaburi, Thailand (hard)       Thailand 2  
    Thailand 0  
    China 5     Auckland, New Zealand (hard)
      China 1  
      New Zealand 4     Christchurch, New Zealand (indoor hard)
  China         New Zealand 2
   bye     2   India 3
   bye
    2   India  
 Thailand relegated to
Group II in 2016.
   Uzbekistan and  India
advance to World Group Play-off.

Group II

For more details on this topic, see 2015 Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Zone Group II.

Seeds:

  1.  Chinese Taipei
  2.  Pakistan
  3.  Philippines
  4.  Indonesia

Remaining nations:

Draw

  Play-offs
17–19 July
1st round
6–8 March
2nd round
14–19 July
3rd round
18–20 September
                                     
  Kaohsiung, Taiwan (hard)
    1   Chinese Taipei 5  
  Colombo, Sri Lanka (clay)     Lebanon 0     Kaohsiung, Taiwan (hard)
  Lebanon 2       1   Chinese Taipei 3  
  Sri Lanka 3   Pasig, Philippines (indoor clay)   3   Philippines 1  
  3   Philippines 5
      Sri Lanka 0     İzmir, Turkey (hard)
    1   Chinese Taipei 2
  Palembang, Indonesia (hard)     2   Pakistan 3
      Iran 0  
  Tehran, Iran (clay)   4   Indonesia 5     Jakarta, Indonesia (hard)
  Iran 1       4   Indonesia 1
  Kuwait 3   Colombo, Sri Lanka (clay)   2   Pakistan 3  
    Kuwait 2
    2   Pakistan 3  
 Lebanon and  Iran
relegated to Group III in 2016.
   Pakistan promoted
to Group I in 2016.

Group III

Date: 25–28 March

Location: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia (hard)

Seeds

Group A

Group B

Relegation play-off

 Qatar and  Saudi Arabia relegated to Group IV in 2016.

Promotion play-off

 Malaysia and  Vietnam promoted to Group II in 2016.

Group IV

Date: 27 April–2 May

Location: Isa Town, Bahrain (hard)

Seeds

Group A

Group B

7th place play-off

5th place play-off

Promotion play-off

 Pacific Oceania and  Singapore promoted to Group III in 2016.

Europe/Africa Zone

Group I

For more details on this topic, see 2015 Davis Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group I.

Seeds: The top three seeds received a bye into the second round.

  1.  Spain
  2.  Ukraine
  3.  Netherlands
  4.  Israel

Remaining nations:

Draw

  2nd round play-offs
30 October–1 November
1st round play-offs
17–19 July/18–20 September
1st round
6–8 March
2nd round
17–19 July
                                     
 
    1   Spain  
  Odense, Denmark (indoor hard)    bye     Vladivostok, Russia (indoor hard)
  1   Spain 5       1   Spain 2
    Denmark 0   Novy Urengoy, Russia (indoor hard)     Russia 3
    Russia 4
  Slagelse, Denmark (indoor hard)       Denmark 1  
    Denmark 2  
    Sweden 3    
    3   Netherlands  
     bye     Kitzbühel, Austria (clay)
 bye       3   Netherlands 3
    Sweden   Örebro, Sweden (indoor hard)     Austria 2
    Austria 3
      Sweden 2  
  Bratislava, Slovakia (indoor hard)
      Slovakia 5  
  Tel Aviv, Israel (indoor hard)     Slovenia 0     Constanța, Romania (clay)
    Slovenia 2         Slovakia 3
  4   Israel 3   Sibiu, Romania (indoor hard)     Romania 2
    Romania 5
  Kranj, Slovenia (indoor hard)     4   Israel 0  
    Slovenia 5  
    Lithuania 0     Płock, Poland (indoor hard)
      Lithuania 2  
  Vilnius, Lithuania (indoor hard)     Poland 3     Szczecin, Poland (indoor hard)
  Lithuania 1         Poland 3
  2   Ukraine 4     2   Ukraine 1
   bye
    2   Ukraine  
 Denmark and  Lithuania
relegated to Group II in 2016.
 Russia,  Netherlands,  Slovakia, and  Poland
advance to World Group Play-off.

Group II

For more details on this topic, see 2015 Davis Cup Europe/Africa Zone Group II.

Seeds:

  1.  South Africa
  2.  Latvia
  3.  Portugal
  4.  Moldova
  5.  Bosnia and Herzegovina
  6.  Finland
  7.  Belarus
  8.  Luxembourg

Remaining nations:

Draw

  Play-offs
17–19 July
1st round
6–8 March
2nd round
17–19 July
3rd round
18–20 September
                                     
  Mersin, Turkey (indoor hard)
    1   South Africa 2  
  Centurion, South Africa (hard)     Turkey 3     İstanbul, Turkey (hard)
1   South Africa 5         Turkey 2  
  Ireland 0   Dublin, Ireland (indoor hard)   7   Belarus 3  
  7   Belarus 5
      Ireland 0     Viana do Castelo, Portugal (clay)
    7   Belarus 2
  Cruz Quebrada, Portugal (indoor hard)     3   Portugal 3
    3   Portugal 4  
  Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, France (clay)     Morocco 1     Viana do Castelo, Portugal (clay)
  Morocco 1       3   Portugal 4
  Monaco 3   Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, France (clay)   6   Finland 1  
  6   Finland 3
      Monaco 2  
  Harare, Zimbabwe (hard)
      Zimbabwe 1  
  Harare, Zimbabwe (hard)   5   Bosnia and Herzegovina 4     Siófok, Hungary (clay)
  Zimbabwe 5       5   Bosnia and Herzegovina 2  
4   Moldova 0   Győr, Hungary (indoor hard)     Hungary 3  
    Hungary 4
    4   Moldova 1     Sofia, Bulgaria (clay)
      Hungary 3
  Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg (indoor hard)       Bulgaria 2
      Madagascar 2  
  Liepāja, Latvia (clay)   8   Luxembourg 3     Luxembourg City, Luxembourg (clay)
  Madagascar 2       8   Luxembourg 0
2   Latvia 3   Jūrmala, Latvia (indoor hard)     Bulgaria 5  
    Bulgaria 4
    2   Latvia 1  
 Ireland,  Morocco,  Moldova, and  Madagascar
relegated to Group III in 2016.
 Portugal and  Hungary
promoted to Group I in 2016.

Group III Europe

Date: 15–18 July

Location: City of San Marino, San Marino (clay)

Seeds:

  1.  Cyprus
  2.  Estonia
  3.  Macedonia
  4.  Georgia

Remaining nations:

Group A

Group B

Group C

Group D

9th to 12th place play-off

5th to 8th place play-off

Promotion play-off

 Norway and  Georgia promoted to Group II in 2016.

Group III Africa

Date: 26–29 October

Location: Cairo, Egypt (clay)

Group A

Group B

7th place play-off

5th place play-off

Promotion play-off


 Tunisia and  Egypt promoted to Group II in 2016.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 "Davis Cup final: Belgium to host Great Britain on clay". BBC Sport. 23 September 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  2. "Belgium beats Argentina, reaches Davis Cup final; U.S. clinches". ESPN. 22 September 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  3. 1 2 "Andy Murray puts Great Britain into first Davis Cup final since 1978". ESPN. 20 September 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2015.</
  4. 1 2 3 Fuller, Russell (21 September 2015). "Andy Murray may miss London finals for Davis Cup final". BBC Sport. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  5. Newbery, Piers (20 November 2015). "Andy Murray loses to Stan Wawrinka at World Tour Finals". BBC Sport. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  6. 1 2 "Great Britain's Davis Cup team delay departure to Belgium". Sky Sports. 23 November 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  7. 1 2 "David Goffin and Steve Darcis named in Belgium Davis Cup team". Sky Sports. 17 November 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  8. 1 2 3 Bowers, Chris (24 November 2015). "Who are the Belgian team standing in the way of Britain's Davis Cup dream?". Eurosport. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  9. 1 2 "Davis Cup final 2015: Great Britain name five-man squad to face Belgium but over-look Aljaz Bedene". Daily Telegraph. 17 November 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  10. 1 2 3 Newbery, Piers (26 November 2015). "Davis Cup final: Kyle Edmund in Great Britain team for Ghent". BBC Sport. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  11. 1 2 3 4 "Andy Murray levels Davis Cup final with win for Great Britain". BBC Sport. 27 November 2015. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Newbery, Piers (28 November 2015). "Andy and Jamie Murray win to put GB on verge of Davis Cup victory". BBC Sport. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  13. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 Newbery, Piers (29 November 2015). "Andy Murray wins the Davis Cup for Great Britain". BBC Sport. Retrieved 29 November 2015.
  14. "Magnificent Andy Murray brings Britain’s 79-year wait for Davis Cup glory to an end". Guardian. 29 November 2015. Retrieved 30 November 2015.
  15. "Belgium v Great Britain". daviscup.com.

External links

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