Davis Cup tennis returns to Glasgow again

Scottish tennis fans will have another chance to see world class matches in Glasgow after the Lawn Tennis Association awarded a third consecutive Davis Cup tie to the city. Great Britain’s Euro/Africa Zone Group I tie with Slovakia will take place at the city’s Braehead Arena on 10-12 February.

Britain were promoted from Group II this season after wins over Tunisia, Luxembourg and Hungary and are aiming to return to the World Group for the first time since 2008.

Addressing the LTA following the announcement, team captain Leon Smith said: “We’re really looking forward to returning to Glasgow as we know from previous experience that Braehead provides a great venue with a really supportive atmosphere.

"Next year will be a real step up in terms of the level of competition so it will make the home advantage all the more important. Slovak Republic will be tough to beat, but if we get a full house behind us again, there’s no reason why we can’t get off to a winning start.”

Slovakia are expected to provide a much sterner test than Britain got in their last outing against Hungary — who were whitewashed 5-0 at Braehead in September — as they possess three singles players in the world’s top 150.

Karol Beck, who reached a career-high ranking of 36th in 2005, is Slovakia’s top player. The 29-year-old has competed in 20 grand slam events during his career. Lukas Lacko and Martin Klizan are likely to battle it out for the second singles berth, but both players are ranked above British number two James Ward.

The British team’s chances will again depend greatly on whether or not Andy Murray is available to play. Murray has recently risen to third in the world rankings but the matches against Slovakia are due to take place just two weeks after the end of next year’s Australian Open.

Given the Scot’s complaints about the current schedule and the addition of the 2012 Olympic tournament to an already crowded calendar it is by no means guaranteed that Murray will be able to play in February.

Murray told reporters at a press conference last month that if he is fit he will always want to play for his country, and it is hoped that another chance to play in front of a Scottish crowd will be enough to tempt him into committing himself to playing.

The winners of the tie will face Belgium in July, with a place in the World Cup group playoffs up for grabs.