Davis Cup 2016: Australia vs USA first round preview

Australia and the United States, two of the most successful Davis Cup nations, will have another potential epic clash at Kooyong on Friday in the World Group first round tie of the tournament.

The Australian team, who are hoping to end their Davis Cup drought, will attempt to stick with their game plan albeit with a reshaped lineup after Nick Kyrgios was pulled out from the team. Australia's team captain Lleyton Hewitt will step in for Kyrgios, officially including his name in the four-man Australian squad before the draw.

But while the former world No. 1 could be coming out of retirement from competitive matches, Hewitt insisted his on-court active role would still depend on the outcome of the first three matches this weekend.

"There's five matches and we've got to win three of 'em, and that's the focus right now and we've got to put our best options forward every single day,” Hewitt said, reports the Sydney Morning Herald. “And we'll have a look at it after each day's play and work out the best strategy for the following day. But at the moment I'm very confident going into tomorrow.”

Sam Groth was elected for singles duty in replacement of Kyrgios and is expected to play doubles with debutant John Peers against USA’s Bob and Mike Bryan. Groth opens against world No. 11 John Isner, while Bernard Tomic takes on US No. 2 Jock Sock.

The last time Australia and USA met in a Davis Cup match was the 1999 centenary quarterfinals in Boston, where an 18-year-old Hewitt powered Australia in his tournament debut over the United States and a retiring Jim Courier who now coaches the country’s national team. Courier has a home crowd advantage at Kooyong’s grass courts, but insisted his team was ready to play for their 46^th all-time meeting against Australia whatever status they have entering the tie.

"The crowd will be behind them. We are here to play whether it is as an underdog or not,” Courier said, reports the ATP’s official website. “There is a great history between our nations of competing in the right way and shaking hands afterwards with good sportsmanship."