Davis Cup: Germany aggressive even without Zverev
Big ambitions even without Alexander Zverev : The German Davis Cup team wants to target the knockout round at the finals in Innsbruck with a surprise against the Serbs around Novak Djokovic.
by SID
last edit: Nov 25, 2021, 10:59 pm
Alexander Zverev still can't do anything with the new Davis Cup and prefers to vacation in the Maldives, Boris Becker even thinks the current format is "insane" - and yet the German tennis professionals go to the finals of the prestigious team tournament with great ambitions. At the start of the group phase in Innsbruck on Saturday (4 p.m. / ServusTV), however, a huge chunk is already waiting: co-favorite Serbia with exceptional talent Novak Djokovic.
But even without Olympic champion Zverev, Jan-Lennard Struff and Co. want to face the team around the Grand Slam record champion with a broad chest. "Our aim is to beat a Novak Djokovic too. That has to go into the heads of the players," said team captain Michael Kohlmann confidently in the "BTV Inside" podcast and emphasized: "Even a Djokovic can be beaten."
Becker in the "Battle of Hartford"
This was only proven last week by the German top player Zverev on the way to the title at the ATP Finals. But instead of taking on the world number one again in Innsbruck, the Hamburger is recovering from an exhausting year on vacation. The new format of the Davis Cup, which has been taking place in a final round at the end of an already bloated season since 2019, has nothing to do with, Zverev is one of the loudest critics.
Germany's tennis icon Boris Becker sees it similarly. "The plan is insane, especially for the top players," said the 54-year-old on the Eurosport podcast "The Yellow from the Ball". Becker had twice won the renowned team competition in the old format with home and away games spread over the year and had numerous great moments, such as the 1987 "Battle of Hartford".
Austria without Thiem
But the team spirit has to carry the German team, which consists of Struff, Dominik Koepfer, Peter Gojowczyk and the Olympic doubles Kevin Krawietz / Tim Pütz, through the tournament. With a special spirit you can "tease something special out of the players", explained Kohlmann. "We have a great team, it's a lot of fun," said Struff, and Gojowczyk also emphasized: "The team spirit is unbelievably good."
One day after the highlight against Serbia on Sunday (4 p.m.) hosts Austria are still waiting in the preliminary round, who will compete without the long-injured star player Dominic Thiem. What an atmospheric duel could have meant in the Innsbruck Olympic Hall, however, becomes a ghost game. Due to the lockdown proclaimed in Austria, the ranks in the preliminary round remain empty.
"I think it's a shame," said Kohlmann, but that shouldn't change anything about the goal of the knockout round: "We want to qualify. Whether first or second doesn't matter at first." Only the winners of the six preliminary round groups and the two best runners-up make it to the quarter-finals. A surprise against Djokovic's Serbs would be all the more valuable.
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