The top tennis players Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal, the numbers 1 and 2 in the world, will participate in the second edition of the ATP Cup next month.
The national tournament serves as preparation for the Australian Open. Djokovic led Serbia to victory in the first ATP Cup last year. In the final, the Serbs won 2-1 against Spain, partly thanks to a victory by Djokovic over Nadal.
The tournament, which will be held in abbreviated form from February 1 to 5, includes twelve countries admitted based on the position of their best tennis player in the world rankings. Australia received a wildcard as a host country, and Japan is allowed to participate because leader Kei Nishikori has a protected ranking after many injuries.
The other participants are Serbia, Spain, Austria (with US Open winner Dominic Thiem), Russia (Daniil Medvedev, Andrei Roeblev), Greece (Stefanos Tsitsipas), Germany (Alexander Zverev), Argentina (Diego Schwartzman), Italy (Matteo Berrettini ), France (Gaël Monfils) and Canada (Denis Shapovalov). All country teams consist of four players.
In the draw on January 20, the countries will be divided into four groups. The group winners qualify for the semi-finals. The Australian Open starts on February 8, three weeks later than intended.