U.S. MEN BEGIN QUEST FOR 2018 DAVIS CUP THIS WEEKEND ON TENNIS CHANNEL
Hall of Fame Captain Jim Courier Leads Americans Sam Querrey, John Isner,
Ryan Harrison and Steve Johnson against Serbia
Tennis Channel, Tennis Channel Plus to Cover all Four Davis Cup First-Round Matchups Live Thursday through Sunday
LOS ANGELES, Jan. 31, 2018 -Tennis Channel will provide complete live coverage of the U.S. Davis Cup team’s first-round competition against Serbia in Nis, Serbia, this weekend, with the first match underway Friday, Feb. 2, at 9 a.m. ET. Hall of Fame Captain (and Tennis Channel analyst) Jim Courier will lead Sam Querrey, John Isner, Ryan Harrison and Steve Johnson into battle against Serbia in their first meeting since 2013, when Serbia defeated the United States 3-1 in Boise, Idaho.
The meeting will consist of two singles matches on Friday, followed by the doubles match Saturday, Feb. 3, at 9 a.m. ET. Tennis Channel’s coverage concludes with the remaining singles play Sunday, Feb. 4, at 8 a.m. ET. Each match is worth one point, with three victories enough to secure a trip to the April quarterfinals to play the winner of this weekend’s Belgium-Hungary competition.
Prior to the United States-Serbia telecast, Tennis Channel and Tennis Channel Plus will show the other three first-round Davis Cup battles. Beginning Thursday, Feb. 1, at 9 p.m. ET, viewers can watch Australia (which, with 28 titles, is second only to the United States’ 32 on the all-time list of Davis Cup champions) play Germany in Brisbane, Australia. Britain, 2015 Davis Cup champion, takes on Spain in Marbella, Spain, starting Friday, Feb. 2, at 5 a.m. ET. A Davis Cup finalist in 2016, Croatia faces Canada in Osijek, Croatia, beginning, Friday Feb. 2, at 8 a.m. ET. Other stars set to play Davis Cup openers this weekend include Germany’s Alexander Zverev, Australia’s Nick Kyrgios, Croatia’s Marin Cilic, and Spain’s Pablo Carreno Busta and David Ferrer.
Viewers can also catch first-round Davis Cup matches on-demand on Tennis Channel Plus, the digital subscription service available to everyone in the United States, regardless of whether they currently subscribe to the television network (complete weekend schedule below).
The United States and Serbia have faced each other twice in Davis Cup play, with Serbia winning both of those meetings. Serbia defeated the United States 3-2 in the 2010 first round in Belgrade, Serbia, before becoming the tournament’s eventual champions. In 2013, Serbia beat the United States in the quarterfinals and went on to reach the Davis Cup final. However, Serbia will be without former World No. 1 Novak Djokovic, who led the team to victories over the Americans in 2010 and 2013.
The team is captained by Courier who, as a player, helped the American squad win the Davis Cup in 1992 and 1995. Among its players, Querrey holds 10 singles titles and advanced to last year’s Wimbledon semifinals and US Open quarterfinals. Isner won his 12th career singles title in July at the BB&T Atlanta Open and holds four doubles titles, including two with countryman Querrey. Last month Harrison advanced to the final at the Brisbane International in Brisbane, Australia, and had his best performance at a Grand Slam in reaching the third round at the Australian Open, before falling to eventual finalist Marin Cilic. Johnson captured his second career singles title at the U.S. Men’s Clay Court Championships in Houston this past April. In 2017, the U.S. Davis Cup team advanced to the quarterfinals, before losing to Australia in Brisbane.
The Serbian team won its sole Davis Cup title in 2010. This year’s team is captained by Nenad Zimonjic and features Dusan Lajovic, Laslo Djere, Nikola Milojevic, Pedja Krstin and Miljan Zekic.
Tennis Channel’s live Davis Cup coverage is as follows (all times ET):
Thursday, Feb. 1:
9 p.m. – Singles Australia v. Germany
Friday, Feb 2:
5 a.m. – Singles Britain v. Spain (Live on Tennis Channel Plus)
8 a.m. – Singles Croatia v. Canada (Live on Tennis Channel Plus)
9 a.m. – Singles USA v. Serbia
10 p.m. – Doubles Australia v. Germany
Saturday, Feb. 3:
8 a.m. – Singles Britain v. Spain / Croatia v. Canada (Live on Tennis Channel Plus)
9 a.m. – Doubles USA v. Serbia
9:30 p.m. – Singles Australia v. Germany
Sunday, Feb. 4:
5 a.m. – Singles Britain v. Spain (Live on Tennis Channel Plus)
8 a.m. – SinglesUSA v. Serbia
Singles Croatia v. Canada (Live on Tennis Channel Plus)
