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Lleyton Hewitt has overlooked Nick Kyrgios and backed Australia’s in-form stars to deliver in next month’s Davis Cup qualifier against Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The skipper on Tuesday night named Alex de Minaur, John Millman, Jordan Thompson, Alexei Popyrin and doubles specialist John Peers for the February 1-2 tie at Adelaide’s Memorial Drive.
With the Davis Cup overhauled for 2019, Australia will feature in one of 12 qualifying ties hoping to join defending champions Croatia, France, Spain, Great Britain, US and Argentina in the 18-team finals in Spain in November.
Australia’s team is the same one that lost to Austria in a World Group playoff last September, apart from the inclusion of 19-year-old Popyrin, who replaces Hewitt after reaching the third round of the Australian Open.
Hewitt played doubles in the last tie, claiming he only did so because players – including Kyrgios – became unavailable at the last minute.
Kyrgios opted out of the clay-court playoff to save himself for the Laver Cup instead being staged a week later in Chicago.
Apart from slumping outside the world’s top 50 to become Australia’s fourth-ranked player, Kyrgios has twice taken to social media this summer to question Hewitt’s perceived favourable treatment towards de Minaur.
But the two-time grand slam quarter-finalist and one-time world No.13 said he was available when asked after his first-round Australian Open loss to Milos Raonic, but that he expected not to be picked.
Australian No.3 Matt Ebden was also overlooked, as he was for the Austrian tie.
After more than a week of public feuding with self-exiled star Bernard Tomic, who claimed he, Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis no longer wanted to play Davis Cup under Hewitt, the skipper broke with tradition and announced his team via a press release about 15 minutes before the deadline for nomination.
“De Minaur has had an incredible start to the year winning his maiden ATP title in Sydney and making the third round of the Aussie Open,” Hewitt said in a statement.
“Popyrin showed us he can match it with the top players and it was pleasing to see him do so well in only his second appearance at a grand slam.
“John Millman and Jordan Thompson will bring experience to the team as will John Peers who is contesting his ninth grand slam men’s doubles quarter-final tomorrow.”
Alex Bolt will also travel to his home state of South Australia for the tie after making the last 32 of the Open too.
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