ATP Cup quarter-final: Australia v Great Britain – live!

Great Britain, under the leadership of Tim Henman, have proven a tight-knit and resilient bunch so far this ATP Cup.

Weather and air quality: It’s mild and humid in Sydney today with temperates in the mid-20s. There’s a southerly wind that’s bringing smoke into the city from the fires burning in southern NSW, meaning the air conditions are not great. The official forecast is for the air quality to be “poor”, meaning the air is “unhealthy for sensitive people, and could cause symptoms, especially in people with heart or lung disease.” But there’s also an hourly alert in place indicating that because of particles pm10 “everyone, especially people with heart or lung disease should avoid outdoor exertion and stay inside as much as possible. If you have symptoms rest and use your reliever medicine. If symptoms persist, seek medical advice.”

The tennis community is acutely aware of the risks posed by Australia’s poor air quality.

10.41pm GMT22:41

Is the ATP Cup a success? That will be the question that dominates column inches in the space between the men’s tennis caravan departing Sydney and alighting in Melbourne for the Australian Open.

It is stating the obvious that it makes little sense for a tournament like this to be so close in the calendar to its rival for the mantle of World Cup of Tennis – November’s Davis Cup Finals. And the anecdotal evidence from crowds is that Perth’s tennis fans have missed the convivial Hopman Cup, while the scheduling in Brisbane between the ATP and WTA Tours has confused a few in Queensland, not least Maria Sharapova. But then, once the idea of an ATP Cup was floated around this time of year, it was an opportunity Tennis Australia were never going to pass up.

It remains to be seen how the players respond, whether the event carries the prestige of a supposed World Cup, and if there’s a $$$ return on the ATP’s investment.

10.14pm GMT22:14

Preamble

Jonathan Howcroft

Hello everybody and welcome to live game-by-game coverage of the first ATP Cup quarter-final between Great Britain and Australia. After taking in the delights of Perth and Brisbane during the group phase, the action has relocated to Sydney for the knockout stage, specifically Ken Rosewall Arena in the Olympic Park precinct. Action gets underway at 10am local time (11pm UK).

There are three matches scheduled for the tie, beginning with Cameron Norrie v Nick Kyrgios, followed by Dan Evans v Alex de Minaur, and finishing with the doubles where Jamie Murray & Joe Salisbury will take on Chris Guccione & John Peers.

The winners of this quarter-final will face the likely – and unenviable – prospect of a semi-final with tournament favourites and recent Davis Cup winners Spain. Rafael Nadal and co may slip up in the last eight tie against Belgium, but after storming through the group phase with a 9-0 unbeaten record, that seems fanciful.

Based on pre-tournament rankings GB and Australia were rated the 17th and 18th best teams in the draw, meaning both can be pleased with their progress so far, irrespective of their performance today. But the hosts will be favoured to make it to the last four after streaking a tough Group F, going unbeaten against the likes of Alex Zverev, Stefanos Tsitsipas and Denis Shapovalov. With ta partisan crowd behind them the mercurial Kyrgios and nuggety de Minaur will be hard to beat.

GB by contrast finished top of Group C by set countback after finishing level with Belgium and Bulgaria on two wins apiece, and level again with the Belgians on six match victories. Under the leadership of Tim Henman Great Britain have coped well with the absence of the injured Andy Murray, not to mention not being able to call up on Kyle Edmund, a man ranked 14 in the world this time last year, but now struggling for form.

If you would like to join in the conversation, please send your emails to [email protected] or tweets to @JPHowcroft.

Nick Kyrgios is up first for Australia against Great Britain in the ATP Cup quarter-finals. Photograph: William West/AFP via Getty Images

source: theguardian.com