Manchester, Great Britain, 16 September 2023 | Leigh Rogers

Australia faces Switzerland in a must-win Davis Cup tie in Manchester today.

The Australian team needs victory to boost their chances of finishing among the top-two nations in a fiercely fought Group B.

However, Australian captain Lleyton Hewitt declared his team was focusing purely on beating Switzerland, rather than worrying about the permutations of recording a top-two finish in the group stage.

“We can only control what we can control,” Hewitt said ahead of their final round-robin tie.

Max Purcell, who has played a starring role with two doubles victories alongside Matt Ebden this week, has full confidence in the Australian team.

“With Demon playing as well as he is, our options for the number two slot and then Matt and I coming in for doubles, I feel like we’re a team that no one wants to play against,” Purcell said.

Three-time Grand Slam champion Stan Wawrinka, who has never previously faced Australian No.1 Alex de Minaur, spearheads Switzerland’s line-up.

The Swiss team also includes 21-year-old Dominic Stricker, fresh from his breakout run at the US Open. Stricker advanced to the fourth round in New York as a qualifier, beating world No.7 Stefanos Tsitsipas along the way.

“It’s going to be tough again,” Hewitt said.

“Stan, we all know how good he is, and Stricker I’ve been watching since Wimbledon and he’s really starting to take off. He’s a quality player.”

This is the sixth Davis Cup meeting between the two nations, with Australia having won four of their previous five ties.

The 2023 Davis Cup Finals are broadcast live on the Nine Network in Australia, with coverage beginning from 9.45pm AEST (Saturday 16 September).

> READ: Matt Ebden’s Davis Cup diary

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