The 2023 Davis Cup Finals Group Stage reached a dramatic conclusion on Sunday as Great Britain and Italy became the last two teams to seal their places at the Final 8 Knockout Stage in Malaga (21-26 November).
Italy overcame Sweden 2-1 in front of a boisterous crowd in Bologna, while Great Britain were cheered to a 2-1 victory over France by 13,000 supporters in Manchester - a record attendance for a British Davis Cup tie.
For Italy, Matteo Arnaldi and Lorenzo Sonego claimed straights sets victories over Leo Borg and Elias Ymer respectively, before Filip Bergevi and Andre Goransson recorded a consolation victory for Sweden in their doubles match against Simone Bolelli and Lorenzo Musetti.
In Manchester, Dan Evans got the better of Arthur Fils 3-6 6-3 6-4 to get Great Britain off to the perfect start, before Ugo Humbert beat Cameron Norrie 7-6(5) 3-6 7-5 to set up a deciding doubles match. Evans returned to court alongside partner Neal Skupski, with the pair outlasting Nicolas Mahut and Edoaurd Roger-Vasselin 1-6 7-6(4) 7-6(6), saving multiple match points to win.
Sixteen teams have competed in 24 ties over the last six days in Bologna, Manchester, Valencia and Split. The group winners and runners-up from each venue can now begin to make plans for their appearance in Andalucia in late November. Those eight teams will compete to be crowned 2023 world champions at the Palacio de Deportes José María Martín Carpena in Malaga on 21-26 November.
The draw for the Final 8 Knockout Stage will take place at the ITF offices in London on Tuesday 19 September at 11:00 local time (further details below).
In Group A, defending champions Canada were in hugely impressive form, with Frank Dancevic’s team winning all three of their ties, dropping just one match as they advanced as group winners. Italy’s victory over Sweden saw the host nation edge out Chile as group runners-up.
In Group B, Great Britain recorded three 2-1 victories this week to secure their place in the quarterfinals once again after missing out in 2022. Last year’s runners-up Australia also advance to the Final 8 Knockout Stage after bouncing back from defeat to the Brits on Wednesday with victories over both France and Switzerland.
In Group C, Czechia ensured they would return to the Davis Cup quarterfinals for the first time since 2016 after a perfect week in Valencia, where they won all nine of their matches. Serbia go through as runners-up after the team, which included 24-time Grand Slam singles champion Novak Djokovic, overcame Korea, Rep. and Spain before falling to the Czechs on Saturday.
In Group D, Netherlands won their group at the Finals for the second straight year and return to Malaga hoping to improve on their quarterfinal finish in 2022. They will be joined by Finals debutants Finland, who stunned both USA and Croatia this week to advance to the Davis Cup quarterfinals for the first time.
