The Lexus GB Davis Cup team are gearing up for their first round qualifier against Japan this weekend with the winning side progressing to September’s second round matches before the Finals.
The Brits have a tough challenge on their hands against a strong Japanese team, but this young squad will be more than ready for the challenge come Friday.
Ahead of the tie, we break down our four biggest questions that could determine who comes out on top in Miki.
How will GB’s new-look side match up with the experienced Japanese team?
There’s been a fair bit of change to the Lexus GB Davis Cup team that we last saw competing in Manchester back in September.
British No.1 Jack Draper is out as he recovers from a hip injury, Cam Norrie has withdrawn from the team and there’s no Dan Evans this time around.
It has resulted in a new-look side with a lot to be excited about. First, Britain’s rising star Jacob Fearnley has been picked for his first Davis Cup tie coming off a very impressive eight month start to his professional career – now coming in as Britain’s highest ranked player in the tie at world No.77.
Billy Harris made a winning start to his Davis Cup career against Finland in Manchester and is getting more and more experience competing with top-level opponents on a weekly basis.
This will also be the first Davis Cup tie for 28-year-old Jan Choinski, who continues to pick up good results on the ATP Challenger Tour and will now be hoping to make that next step at this point in his career.
The fresh new GB team is in stark contrast to a Japanese squad which has a bunch of experience in this competition.
Japan has three singles players all ranked inside the top 120 and all with 10 or more Davis Cup ties to their name – Yoshito Nishioka, Taro Daniel and former top five star Kei Nishikori. All three players have picked up significant wins for their nation in the past and were pivotal in their journey back to the Finals Qualifiers this year.
This tie is a fantastic opportunity for these British players to prove that they are ready to become permanent fixtures in the team and a win against a strong Japanese team would be a statement to both fans and captain Leon Smith.
Can Jacob Fearnley replicate Australian Open form?
As we’ve already mentioned, Fearnley comes into the Lexus GB team as the rising star on the men’s side of the game.
The 23-year-old graduated from Texas Christian University in the summer of last year and since then has played lights out tennis through the opening months of his professional career.
A maiden ATP Challenger Tour title in his first event at the Rothesay Open Nottingham was swiftly followed by another three trophies and a debut inside the top 100 before the end of the year.
His stellar rise gave the British star main draw entry into the Australian Open for the first time, where he showed his quality on the big stage. Fearnley used his experience from a first Grand Slam win in the summer to beat Nick Kyrgios on the Kia Arena, followed by promising French talent Arthur Cazaux before losing out to eventual runner-up Alexander Zverev in the third round.
Fearnley plays with a level of fearlessness that has allowed him to bring his A-game to every match on every stage – even when facing 24-time Grand Slam champion Novak Djokovic on Centre Court in SW19 where he managed to take a set in his first major tournament.
Ahead of his Davis Cup debut, fans will be excited to see if he can keep up this level and like another fellow Scot in the past, Andy Murray, lead this British team into the next round.