AFTER previewing each of the 18 Davis Cup Finals nations, Rookie Me Central will now preview each of the six groups to determine how the early stages of the tournament might go. We continue by taking a look at Group D, with the world number twos and one of the Davis Cup dominant nations leading the way.

>> CROATIA DAVIS CUP PREVIEW
>> AUSTRALIA DAVIS CUP PREVIEW
>> HUNGARY DAVIS CUP PREVIEW

GROUP D

Coming into the tournament, 2018 Davis Cup champions Croatia are ranked second overall, and whilst the nation might be considered underrated, it is easy to see why they have been so impressive at the Davis Cup. Whilst Cilic and Coric present a solid pairing – Cilic winning his 20th career ATP Tour title recently and Coric forever a reliable Top 100, often Top 50 player – it is the doubles pairing of Mektic and Pavic which really stands out. The duo are ranked first in the world for the format, and therefore should beat anyone they come across, and that certainly should be Australia and Hungary at the very least. It means that Croatia usually only needs to win one singles tie to salute, though they did not have as much success in the format than as they did in the five-match original format.

Australia will need to rely on winning both singles in order to advance, with de Minaur and Millman likely to suit up in the green or gold. Popyrin presents the highest upside of the group, but whether or not captain Lleyton Hewitt is willing to pull the trigger on him is yet to be seen. Australia has not shown it is willing to change too much given the team selection, with Australia’s most in-form player, James Duckworth, not selected. With Peers leading the doubles, Australia has opted for only one specialist doubles player which against Croatia in itself is strange, though the Aussies will be banking on being able to claim both singles, which is certainly possible.

Regardless of who wins out of Croatia and Australia – who anti-climatically play first in the group – most assume that those two nations will take care of Hungary. Fucsovics has shown great form this year, starting at the Australian Open and proving a headache for a lot of higher ranked opponents. Whilst he might worry the likes of Cilic and de Minaur, the drop off to the next best in Balazs is substantial, and it is unlikely the European nation will claim an additional win which is required to claim the overall tie victory.

PREDICTION:

1st Croatia
2nd Australia
3rd Hungary