EVEN without a member of the ‘Big Three’ old guard – Novak Djokovic, Rafael Nadal and Roger Federer – and the previous most recent Grand Slam winner heading into the year in Dominic Thiem, the Team Europe lineup is still a ridiculously strong side that sees the lowest ranked member of the team still higher than the highest ranked member of Team World.

Team Europe, coached by Bjorn Borg heads in yet to lose a Laver Cup, with the six-player competition running over three days this weekend. A day and night session is completed with six singles and one doubles match per day over the three days. The only two players who remain in the team from the 2019 edition – the 2020 Laver Cup was cancelled due to COVID-19 – are Stefanos Tsitsipas and Alexander Zverev.

The matches are best of three, with the third set being a super tiebreak (first to 10 or win by two) to determine a winner if need be. The six players each compete in a singles match over the first two days, with the doubles combinations also needing to be different. The winner team must reach 13 points, with a point awarded to the Friday winners, two points to the Saturday winners and three points to the Sunday winners, putting greater emphasis on the later matches.

TEAM EUROPE LINEUP:

Daniil Medvedev (Russia)
Stefanos Tsitsipas (Greece)
Alexander Zverev (Germany)
Andrey Rublev (Russia)
Matteo Berrettini (Italy)
Casper Ruud (Norway)

An absolute super lineup, Berrettini and Ruud were the captains choices, with Borg taking no chances in the tournament. With Medvedev the reigning US Open champion and ATP Finals winner, Zverev reaching the Roland Garros final last year and Tsitsipas getting close to a Grand Slam title, the Europe side is stacked against a Team World side without a Grand Slam or ATP Finals winner. Ruud is the weakest link in the side, being a relative newcomer to the Top 10, and has predominantly dominated on clay, though all eyes will be on him among the world’s best, particularly if the coaches cheekily face him off against nemesis Nick Kyrgios.

One would expect Medvedev and Rublev to pair off in the doubles, with Zverev and Berrettini a likely good pairing as well with their relative strengths, though Medvedev would be able to work with anyone. Tsitsipas is coming in off an injury that ruled him out of the Davis Cup, but will hopefully be right to go for the Laver Cup. He is one of only two players to have appeared at a Laver Cup after a 1-2 record (two doubles, both losses) in 2019, with Zverev (6-2) the more experienced player at the format.

Medvedev makes his long-awaited Laver Cup debut, and coming in off a maiden Grand Slam title, he is the most in-form player in the competition. Without Djokovic, Medvedev will lead the team in 2021, and whilst he might not be familiar with the format, it will be hard to see him dropping many matches, and he should be handed two singles, along with Tsitsipas and Zverev to load up on the best chance of winning.

Overall, Team Europe should win the Laver Cup yet again, with the 10th ranked Ruud higher than Team World’s top player in Denis Shapovalov (12th). Stranger things have happened, and the event is effectively an exhibition tournament, but expect Europe to showcase why it is the strongest tennis continent on earth at the 2021 tournament.

Picture credit: Garrett Ellwood/USTA