Great Britain’s Kyle Edmund is having an ankle scan after suffering an injury during practice for the Davis Cup semi-final against Australia.
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Saturday will likely feature the Murrays in the pivotal doubles while Australia, captained by Wally Masur, will be led by world number 23 Bernard Tomic and iconic 34-year-old veteran Leyton Hewitt.
“Grothy and I teamed very well under massive pressure and got it done in July (against Kazakhstan) so we are going to be ready for the battle all weekend. We got into this position by everyone in the team playing their part”, Murray said. “When we play five-a-sides he shines out, but I’m going to say that aren’t I?”
Casey Dellacqua, left, and Lleyton Hewitt teamed up for the 2009 Hopman Cup, where they lost to Germany’s Nicolas Kiefer and Sabine Lisicki.
His younger brother’s contribution to Britain’s cause has been vast, building a 23-2 record in singles rubbers to steer his country out of the Davis Cup wilderness they inhabited in 2010 when they almost dropped into the bottom division.
“We can point fingers at one another and say that there’s pressure for certain individuals and none on the others, but they’ll be feeling the pressure as well and we’ll see who handles it better over the weekend”.
Leading Britain to Davis Cup glory would rank as high as winning Wimbledon in Andy Murray’s list of achievements, according to former British number one Greg Rusedski.
“Whoever gets the opportunity to face him on day one really has nothing to lose, you can go out free swinging and play your game”.
He has, he reported, had five days of complete rest since returning home after his disappointing fourth round exit to Kevin Anderson at the US Open. “I think Andy pretty much has got to win that match”.
If Andy is going to play three days then that’s part and parcel of Davis Cup – this guy’s [Hewitt] done it on numerous occasions. “After playing four hours 15, four hours and a half, I wanted to take some time off and freshen up before getting here”.
While Britain claimed the last of their nine titles in 1936, Belgium have never won the team competition and will also approach their home semi-final against Argentina in Brussels with opportunity knocking loudly on the door.
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“The thing I like most about it from a preparation standpoint is that the conditions are extremely hot there… and also you’re guaranteed matches”.
