Tsitsipas, Greek team looking forward to playing in Davis Cup

By Kristel Satumbaga

World No. 6 Stefanos Tsitsipas is excited to share the court with his Greek teammates when they play against the Philippines on Friday in the Davis Cup World Group II playoffs at the Philippine Columbian Association in Paco, Manila.

The Greeks arrived on Monday in separate flights for the two-day affair, where the Greeks and the Filipino Cuppers are facing for the first time in history under the new tournament format.

“Davis Cup is an event that’s been on my bucket list to play and I’m looking forward to playing this rubber and trying to represent Greece as best as possible,” said the 21-year-old Tsitsipas, who is coming off a runner-up finish against Novak Djokovic at the Dubai Tennis Championships last Saturday.

A semifinalist at the 2019 Australian Open and winner of five career titles, Tsitsipas debuted in the Davis Cup scene last year where he steered Greece from Group III to Group II under the old format in the Europe/Africa Zone.

He hopes his commitment to play for the country will translate to their goal of reaching the higher stage.

“I’m really committed to play for the country. I’ve been playing individually all my life and I really miss the team spirit and playing for the team and not just for myself. It kind of sort of give something extra out there, especially the memories that I get to share with my teammates,” he said.

Competing with Stefanos are younger brother Petros Tsitsipas, Michail Pervolarakis and Markos Kalovelonis. Their team captain is Dimitris Chatzinikolaou.

The PH team is composed of Ruben Gonzales, Jeson Patrombon, AJ Lim, Francis Casey Alcantara and Eric Olivarez Jr.

Team draw is on Thursday while the first two singles matches will be played on Friday. The doubles and the reverse two singles will be competed on Saturday.

Source: Manila Bulletin