Another withdrawal from the Davis Cup: Novak Djokovic pulls out, joining Alcaraz and Auger-Aliassime

Novak Djokovic is the latest player to withdraw from the Davis Cup in a diminished edition of the tournament. The 24-time Grand Slam champion was scheduled to represent Serbia again but chose to rest after his US Open campaign, where he was eliminated in the semifinals by Carlos Alcaraz.

Just hours earlier, it was announced that Carlos Alcaraz would also not be part of the Davis Cup, representing Spain. This decision came after he won the title at Flushing Meadows, where he defeated Jannik Sinner in the semifinals. This is a significant loss for Spain, especially since their No. 2 player, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina, also won't be in the Second Round Qualifiers.

Focus on recovery for Djokovic

In recent seasons, Djokovic has repeatedly stated that his focus at this stage of his career is on Grand Slam tournaments and on representing Serbia—particularly in the Davis Cup. "I've said it multiple times: my biggest motivation is playing for national team and Grand Slams. Everything else, doesn't motivate me that much, and I use as preparation," the former world No. 1 said in september 2024.

However, this is the second time this year that "Nole" has opted to skip the tournament. He's not in the Qualifiers, but in World Group I, which means they are eliminated from the main competition and are playing for a spot in the 2026 Qualifiers.

The Serbians will face the Turkish team, led by Yanki Erel and Ergi Kirkin, two players currently outside the top 400 who have never entered the top 250 of the ATP rankings. Just like at the beginning of the year, Miomir Kecmanović and Hamad Medjedovic will be the ones to lead Viktor Troicki's team.

In the first round of the Qualifiers, Serbia faced Holger Rune's Denmark team the weekend after the Australian Open final. Nole had suffered an injury against Alexander Zverev in the Melbourne semifinals (6-7, ret.), forcing him to withdraw from the Davis Cup. With Medjedović and Kecmanović leading the Serbian team, they ended up losing the series 3-2 to Denmark, with the young Elmer Moller as the standout player, winning the decisive match against Medjedović.

Major absences in Qualifiers second round

Several key players have been added to the list of absences in the Qualifiers Second Round, which determines who will play in the Davis Cup Final 8 at the end of the season. The first players to withdraw this weekend were Tommy Paul and Ben Shelton, who were replaced by Reilly Opelka, Rajeev Ram, and Austin Krajicek. They join Taylor Fritz and Frances Tiafoe for the tough match against the Czech Republic, who will have Jakub Menšík and Jiří Lehečka as their team leaders.

Another team that will have a significant absence is Japan—one of the surprises at this stage—as their No. 1 singles player, Kei Nishikori, will be out due to injury. They face Germany, who now look like heavy favorites despite the news that Daniel Altmaier is also out.

In the match between Croatia and France, there were absences from both teams. For the Croatians, the No. 1 player was Borna Ćorić, but an injury also left him out, making way for the young Matej Dodig. On the other side, the French team also lost its No. 1 singles player, Ugo Humbert, who will be replaced by Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard and Corentin Moutet.

Felix Auger-Aliassime, Other Players Also Out

In the World Group zone, the most significant absence will be that of 25-year-old Canadian Felix Auger-Aliassime. He was scheduled to lead his team but opted to take a break after a busy couple of weeks at the US Open, where he reached the semifinals before being eliminated by Jannik Sinner.

Also in the match for Chile, Nicolás Jarry and Alejandro Tabilo withdrew at the last minute, both due to not feeling physically well. Meanwhile, Bulgaria and Great Britain already knew about the absences of their main players, Grigor Dimitrov and Jack Draper, due to long-term injuries.