Australia vs Switzerland Preview & Prediction | 2023 Davis Cup Finals | Group Stage
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THE FACTS
When is Australia vs Switzerland on and what time does it start? Australia vs Switzerland will take place on Saturday 16th September, 2023 – not before 13:00 (UK)
Where is Australia vs Switzerland taking place? Australia vs Switzerland will take place at AO Arena in Manchester, UK
What surface is Australia vs Switzerland being played on? Australia vs Switzerland will take place on an indoor hard court
Where can I get tickets for Australia vs Switzerland? Visit this link for the latest ticket information for Australia vs Switzerland
Where can I watch Australia vs Switzerland? All matches can be watched on Tennis Channel International’s Pay TV, while all Great Britain matches will be televised and streamed on BBC platforms
THE PREDICTION
Group B is still very much alive after two rounds each, although Switzerland need a small miracle to progress. Australia put a bruising 2-1 defeat to Great Britain behind them with a crucial 2-1 victory over France on Thursday, with world number 12 Alex de Minaur showing up to beat Ugo Humbert in straight sets. Max Purcell replaced Thanasi Kokkinakis as second option to face Adrian Mannarino, where he lost in tight straight sets, but the in-form Aussie returned to partner Matthew Ebden in an assured straight-sets victory in the doubles decider. Ebden and Purcell, Wimbledon champions last summer, have won both of their matches this week in Manchester to look the vital piece in this vital clash.
Switzerland have a promising set of young players coming through but it was old head Stan Wawrinka that gave them any hope at all in squeaking through to the Davis Cup Finals. World number 152 Leandro Riedi was hugely impressive in a three-set defeat to Andy Murray first up on Friday, hitting well over 50 winners with some effortless returning to take the former world number one all the way in a three-hour battle. Wawrinka looked in great shape against an out-of-sorts Cam Norrie to draw the tie at 1-1 but he struggled to make any serious headway in the doubles decider alongside Dominic Stricker, with the Swiss seriously lacking a dedicated doubles player amidst their ranks.
Australia captain Lleyton Hewitt has a few headaches here with Swiss youngsters Dominic Stricker and Leandro Riedi both impressing in their second option matches this week and that is particularly hard problem to solve with Stricker a left-hander and Riedi a right. World number 12 Alex de Minaur should have enough in his current vein of form to overcome Stan Wawrinka but if the Swiss finds the level he produced against Norrie yesterday that first option match could be a proper thriller. Ultimately the Swiss will have to get the job done in the singles matches as they look set to go down easily in doubles – and requiring all three points to have any chance to progress means any defeat in this tie will see heads go down. It seems likely that Kokkinakis or Jordan Thompson come in to open for Australia, leaving Purcell fresh for doubles, but calling the winner of that first match seems impossible with so many potential match-ups.
It would not be a surprise to see Switzerland edge this tie in the singles but miss out on qualifying anyway, with Alex de Minaur and Stan Wawrinka yet to face each other on tour. Leave this tie out of a promising accumulator but otherwise take Switzerland to edge it 2-1.
