Canada takes on the Davis Cup in Montreal this weekend, but will be without two big names: Félix Auger-Aliassime and Denis Shapovalov.
The Quebecer, ranked 30th in the world, and the Ontario native, ranked 137th in the world, are both taking part in the tournament in Montpellier, France.
It's a shame for the Montrealers and for the Canadian team, which can't count on its two biggest names. Auger-Aliassime will have to defend points in the coming weeks, so we understand that he wants to focus on the start of the season.
“It is the players who decide. They were good for the team, but they decided to play a tournament and we still have depth,” Canada captain Frank Dancevic said reassuringly at a Tuesday press conference yesterday.
Vulnerable opponent
Canada, second in the Davis Cup nations rankings, hosts Korea Republic (18th) in a qualifier for the final round-robin.
This is a return to the country for the event, whose last visit was in Toronto in 2018.
The Canadian team consists of Milos Raonic (306th), Vasek Pospisil (486th), Gabriel Diallo (132nd), Alexis Galarneau (211th) and Liam Draxl (298th).
The Korean team is led by Soonwoo Kwon (700th), whose ranking is skewed by an injury that kept him off the field last season.
“He took part in the Australian Open, he is coming back well and we have high hopes for him,” said South Korean captain Young-Jun Kim.
Not sure yet
The draw for the matches will take place on Thursday morning in downtown Montreal. Until then, Frank Dancevic has to think.
“I haven't decided yet who will play which match and doubles. We have a lot of variety with players with different styles. I choose the player who gives me the best tennis and I also take into account the number of games the boys have to play on the weekend.”
Dancevic is afraid of Kwon, who might surprise one of his foals.
“It's very. He's a good, dangerous player and got a big win over Félix. He hasn't played much in the last six months due to injury, but we have to be good.”
Another animal
While in the professional world there are strict rules and strict rules regarding crowds, the David Cup allows the crowd to be loud, even encourages it.
“Knowing we have our country behind us can give us that little something extra we need,” agrees Dancevic, who has played numerous Davis Cup matches throughout his career.
He claims that this ingredient allows players to be transported and transform.
“The Davis Cup can bring out a whole different animal in a player, we saw that with Gabriel and Alexis against Italy in qualifying last fall. They haven't surpassed their level, they've just continued to improve their game.
“You don’t just play for yourself. During the season you play a little for your country, but it's very individual. At the Davis Cup you carry the weight of your country and it's a different feeling, the stakes seem higher.
Cautious
In addition to Soonwoo Kwon, the Korean team consists of Seongchan Hong (224th), Jeamon Lee (508th), Jisung Nam (689th) and Minkyu Song, a doubles player.
There's no reason to be afraid, but Frank Dancevic still wants to be careful.
“Korea is used to playing in these conditions and on this type of surface. It’s not like playing against a Latin American country whose players are used to a different type of surface.”
The Koreans want to stay in the World Group as they have been there for two years.