IN the fifth of our Davis Cup group previews, we take a look at Group E. The group has a lot of question marks surrounding the sides, with Grand Slam winner Andy Murray returning to lead Great Britain in as favourites against Kazahkstan and Netherlands. Realistically it is hard to see any of these teams challenging the title contenders for the Cup, but you have to be in it to win it.

Group E:

Great Britain
Dan Evans
Andy Murray
Jamie Murray
Neal Skupski
Captain: Leon Smith

Kazakhstan
Alexander Bublik
Mikhail Kukushkin
Dmitry Popko
Alexsandr Nedovyesov
Andrey Golubev
Captain: Dias Doskarayev

Netherlands
Robin Haase
Tallon Griekspoor
Botic Van de Zandschulp
Wesley Koolhof
Jean-Julien Rojer
Captain: Paul Haarhuis

Fixtures:

Tuesday, November 19 – Kazakhstan vs. Netherlands
Wednesday, November 20 – Great Britain vs. Netherlands
Thursday, November 21 – Great Britain vs. Netherlands
Friday, November 22 – Winner of Group E vs. Winner of Group C

—

Preview:

The available team for Great Britain is not its full strength side, with the British side very limited in what it can do throughout the tournament. Given that Jamie Murray and Neal Skupski are ranked 20th and 31st in doubles respectively and are specialist doubles players, it means Andy Murray and Dan Evans are the set singles players. Andy Murray is still on the comeback after a long period out, and to back up with a strong performance will take a solid effort. At his best, Andy Murray is one of the top players in the world, but he is not at that level yet, and the question has to be put forward that he might not get to that level again. Evans is the consistent player in the side and ranked at world number 42, he will be the main man in that regard. Cameron Norrie and Kyle Edmund were not named in the side, and while the Brits will be favourites in this group, they will struggle in the knockout stage if they do make it through.

Kazakhstan is a nation that will be competitive in the group, and could well topple the other two sides, but like Great Britain, are unlikely to cause any headaches for the title contenders. Alexander Bublik (48th in the world) and Mikahil Kukushkin (67th) are very handy players, while Dmitry Popko (189th) will be the back-up singles player for the Cup. While Kukushkin is in the top ranked doubles player for Kazahkstan, meaning Dias Doskarayev will more than likely not risk him in the doubles when Andrey Golubev and Aleksandr Nedovyesov will be the team of choice as they are not too far behind Kukushkin in the format. Kazahkstan will realistically need to win both singles to advance through to the next stage, as the British and Dutch doubles pairings will be far too strong on the court.

Netherlands are similar to Colombia in Group D with the doubles being their best chance of saluting. While Robin Haase (162nd in the world) is better than his singles ranking might suggest, at age 32, he is similar to Santiago Giraldo in that his best is behind him. He is still capable of shaking top 100 players and the likes of Kukushkin and Murray would not take him lightly. Haase will have both Tallon Griekspoor (177th) and Botic Van de Zandschulp (200th) for singles company, and if they did make it out of the group, it will hardly strike fear into some of the top sides contending. The big plus for the Dutch is they will have a ripping doubles contest with Great Britain given their doubles combination of Wesley Koolhof and Jean-Julien Rojer are ranked 12th and 22nd respectively in doubles. If Haase can upset Kukushkin and Murray, then the Dutch can force their way into the knockout stage, but they are the underdogs in this group.

Prediction:

Kazakhstan defeat Netherlands 2-1
Great Britain defeat Netherlands 3-0
Great Britain defeat Kazahkstan 2-1

With the return of Andy Murray, Great Britain are most likely to prevail and face Argentina in the next stage.