The groups of the 2021 ATP Cup have been announced. This year, the event will take place in Melbourne with just 12 Teams in order to cope with the challenges presented by the Coronavirus pandemic. In the same week, 2 ATP250 will also be played by the rest of the players that are currently in Melbourne.
The 12 teams are divided into 4 groups of 3. The winners of each group will qualify for the semifinals that will be played with a knock-out format.
GROUP A
This is probably the toughest group. Serbia is defending champion, but Germany and Canada have a rather strong line-up
- Serbia – Djokovic – Lajovic
- Germany – Zverev – Struff
- Canada – Shapovalov – Raonic
GROUP B
In this group, the 2020 runner-up (Spain) is the overwhelming favorite. There will be an intriguing match between Rafael Nadal and Stefanos Tsitsipas, but overall the Spanish team should qualify for the semifinals. Unfortunately, Team Australia won’t have the participation of Nick Kyrgios that is usually inspired by this kind of team competition.
- Spain – Nadal – Bautista Agut
- Greece – Tsitsipas – Pervolarakis
- Australia – De Minaur – Millman
GROUP C
This group is quite even and it seems that the performance of Dennis Novak (Austria) will be crucial for deciding the outcome. If the Austrian no.2 will be up to the task, his team should qualify for the semifinals.
- Austria – Thiem – Novak
- Italy – Berrettini – Fognini
- France – Monfils – Paire
GROUP D
In this group, Russia is the overwhelming favorite to reach the semifinal. Argentina is represented by Schwartzman, Pella that are both clay-court specialists. Nishikori (Japan) is not in great condition.
- Russia – Medvedev – Rublev
- Argentina – Schwartzman – Pella
- Japan – Nishikori – Nishioka
Novak Djokovic in 2021
Now the world no.1, Novak played his last match on the 21st of November 2020 when he was overcome by Dominic Thiem 7-5 6-7(10) 7-6(5) in the semifinal in the Nitto ATP Finals (draw).
Rafael Nadal in 2021
Ranked no.2, Nadal played his last match on the 21st of November 2020 when he was overcome by Daniil Medvedev 3-6 7-6(4) 6-3 in the semifinal in the Nitto ATP Finals (draw).
Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal played each other 56 times. Their current head to head is 29-27 for Djokovic. Previously, the last time they locked horns, Rafael Nadal won 6-0 4-6 6-1 in the final in Rome (Internazionali BNL d’Italia) in May 2019.
Dominic Thiem in 2021
At the moment ranked no.3 (career-high), Thiem played his last match on the 22nd of November 2020 when he surrendered to Daniil Medvedev 4-6 7-6(2) 6-4 in the final in the Nitto ATP Finals (draw).
Stefanos Tsitsipas in 2021
Currently the world no.6, the Greek played his last match on the 19th of November 2020 when he lost to Rafael Nadal 6-4 4-6 6-2 in the round robin in the Nitto ATP Finals (draw).
Dominic Thiem and Stefanos Tsitsipas played each other 8 times. The head to head is 5-3 for Thiem. The last time they played, Stefanos Tsitsipas won 6-76 6-2 7-64 in the final in London (Nitto ATP Finals) in November 2019.
