World’s top four players in action on Day 1 at ATP Cup

The schedule for the 2021 ATP Cup, the 12-country event being played at Melbourne Park from 2-6 February has been released. The tournament dates have been pushed back 24 hours to allow quarantined players the best possible preparation and training opportunities.

Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal, Dominic Thiem and Daniil Medvedev will all begin their 2021 campaigns on Day 1 of the event. In the day session, defending champion Serbia will open its bid for a second straight title against Canada on Rod Laver Arena and Austria will face Italy on John Cain Arena.

At last year’s event, Serbia overcame Canada 3-0 in the knockout stages. The tie produced one of the most memorable matches of the event, when Djokovic outlasted Denis Shapovalov in a final-set tie-break. They are set for a rematch as their country’s No.1 singles players.

In the evening session, 2020 finalist Spain will face hosts Australia on Rod Laver Arena. Rafael Nadal and Alex de Minaur will meet again in singles after last year’s semifinals, when Spain prevailed 3-0. Russia, which reached the semifinals at the inaugural ATP Cup, will begin its title bid against Argentina. The two countries met in the knockout stages last year, with Russia earning a 3-0 victory.

An individual match to watch includes world No.2 Nadal against 2019 Nitto ATP Finals champion Stefanos Tsitsipas, which will take place when Spain faces Greece in the evening session on Thursday 4 February.

Germany, Greece, France and Japan will play their first ties of the tournament on Day 2. Each tie will consist of three matches with No.2 singles players competing before the No.1 singles, followed by a doubles match.

The opening three days of the tournament will feature 12 group stage ties, with the four group winners advancing to the semifinals. The semifinals will be held simultaneously on Friday, before the two finalists meet in Saturday’s championship match.

To ensure the safety of all patrons on site, the Melbourne Park precinct will be split into different zones.

Spectators wanting to watch ATP Cup Group A and Group B matches will need to purchase a Rod Laver Arena Zone ticket while a John Cain Arena Zone ticket is required for Group C and Group D matches.

Group stage ticket prices are $20 for adults and $5 for kids and go on sale Thursday 28 January at 12.00pm AEDT via Ticketmaster.