Manchester, Great Britain, 13 September 2023 | Leigh Rogers

Australia begins its 2023 Davis Cup Finals campaign in Manchester today, facing host nation Great Britain in a round-robin tie.

This is the 14th Davis Cup meeting between these two nations, with Australia looking to build on an 8-5 win-loss record.

Alex de Minaur, who currently sits at a career-high world No.12, spearheads an Australian team looking to better last year’s runner-up finish.

“What motivates us is to try and get one better than we did last year,” De Minaur said.

“We got so close to being able to lift that Davis Cup trophy, which gave us a lot of fire in the belly to come back and go for more.”

Yet De Minaur acknowledges it won’t be easy.

“We’ve got a very tough group, a lot of very good players. Very dangerous, players and nations, so it’s going to be very tough,” he said.

“We have to come together as a team and hopefully be able to put a strong performance in both the singles and doubles. We want to stick together and bring the same camaraderie we did last year.”

> READ: Max Purcell targets next steps in Davis Cup

The Great Britain team boasts two top-30 singles players, as well as former world No.1 Andy Murray.

Their strong line-up also includes the in-form Jack Draper, a rising 21-year-old star who advanced to the US Open fourth-round run earlier this month, and world No.3 doubles player Neal Skupski.

“We have a great team with a lot of Davis Cup experience who will be ready to give it everything,” Great Britain captain Leon Smith said.

The top-two performing Group B nations, which also includes France and Switzerland, advance to the elimination stage of the finals in November.

Australia plays both France and Switzerland later this week.

> READ: Australia’s schedule for 2023 Davis Cup Finals revealed

“I feel like we’re really in a tough group,” Australian captain Lleyton Hewitt said.

“They’re all quality teams and we’re going to have to be on our game in every single match.

“We’re pretty happy with where we’re at. I’ve got a good group of guys here that I believe in and on the back of what we did last year as well, there’s a lot of belief within the team.”

The 2023 Davis Cup Finals are broadcast live on the Nine Network in Australia, with coverage beginning from 9.45pm AEST (Wednesday 13 September).

> READ: Davis Cup experience counts for Thanasi Kokkinakis

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