Davis Cup: Debut? - Carlos Alcaraz nominated for qualifying round
After the Davis Cup finals last year didn't work out for Carlos Alcaraz due to the corona, the 18-year-old could make his team debut in March.
by Stefan Bergmann
last edit:
Feb 02, 2022, 02:15 pm
From March 4th to 5th, the qualifying duels for the Davis Cup finals 2022 are on the program - at least for the teams that were eliminated in the previous group phase of the team competition. While Germany and Austria face away games in Brazil - and South Korea respectively - Spain are preparing for a home game in Marbella, Málaga against Romania.
The 18-year-old high-flyer Carlos Alcaraz could make his Davis Cup debut in the province of Andalusia. After the youngster from Murcia missed the final tournament in Madrid in 2021 due to a corona infection, he has now been called up by captain Sergi Bruguera for the preliminaries in southern Spain. Should Alcaraz actually get a chance there, it would be his first appearance in the renowned team competition.
Rafael Nadal not in the Spanish squad
Also called up by Bruguera are Roberto Bautista Agut, Pablo Carreno Busta and Alejandro Davidovich Fokina - the latter could also make his Davis Cup debut. The team of the two-time French Open champion (1993, 1994) is reinforced by the doubles specialist Marcel Granollers. Unsurprisingly, Australian Open champion Rafael Nadal is missing from the squad. The record man from Mallorca should save his strength for the hard court events in Indian Wells and Miami.
The winners of the qualifiers will meet the 2021 finalists Russia and Croatia at the 2022 Davis Cup Finals. The wildcard holders Great Britain and Serbia are also fixed. The 12 losers of the preliminary round will contest a playoff for next year's qualifying duels in World Group I in September.