MALAGA, Spain — Novak Djokovic, who won three Grand Slams this year, will lead Serbia against Britain in the last quarterfinal of the Davis Cup Finals on Thursday.
“It’s the last week of the season so one final push is necessary from each one of us, and I’m excited because I have been playing some really good tennis, particularly in the last four months of the season,” said Djokovic, who won a record-breaking seventh ATP Finals title on Sunday.
Djokovic flew to Malaga shortly after his win in Turin to start preparing for the Davis Cup.
“I started training right away, because obviously there is not much time to really leave the racquet aside,” he said. “Davis Cup has been and is one of my greatest goals of this season and always is. Hopefully I will be able to contribute to win.”
Djokovic is on a 20-match winning streak in Davis Cup singles matches, going back to a loss to Argentina’s Juan Martin del Potro in a 2011 semifinal match in which he had to quit due to injuries.
Djokovic’s last loss in a completed singles match in the Davis Cup was in 2009. He is tied with Nenad Zimonji at the top of the list for most Davis Cup match-wins by a Serbian player.
Djokovic helped Serbia win its first Davis Cup title in 2010.
Britain, seeking an 11th Davis Cup trophy, will take on Serbia without Andy Murray and Dan Evans because of injuries.
The Brits, looking to reach the semifinals for the first time in four years, will be led by No. 18 Cameron Norrie and No. 60 Jack Draper. Neal Skupski and Joe Salisbury are set to play in the doubles.
“Great Britain is one of the greatest tennis nations out there and a very strong team in this format,” Djokovic said. “We are a team that don’t have any doubles specialists. We rely on singles, but if it comes to doubles, we are also ready to pair up in the different combinations and give it all.”