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Alcaraz and Nadal to Lead Spanish Davis Cup Squad

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“I count on Rafa for everything, he can play singles and also in doubles,” Spanish captain David Ferrer said.


Photo credit: Clive Brunskill/Getty

The Dream Team is set for a Spanish homecoming.

World No. 3 Carlos Alcaraz and Rafael Nadal will lead Spain in the Davis Cup Final 8 in Malaga, Spain, Spanish captain David Ferrer announced today.

Ferrer has named Alcaraz, Roberto Bautista Agut, Pablo CarreƱo Busta, Marcel Granollers and Nadal to the squad for the Davis Cup Final 8 set for November 19-24 at the Palacio de Deportes Jose Maria Martin Carpena Arena in Malaga, Spain.

Captain Ferrer said Nadal is already training for the Davis Cup Final 8 and plans to play the 6 Kings Slam exhibition in Saudi Arabia next month as part of his Davis Cup preparation.

“I’m very excited to have Rafa and I’m very proud of this team and what we’ve achieved so far. Hopefully we can give great joy in Malaga,” Ferrer told the Spanish media in a press conference today.Ā  “There are still two months left, but his idea is to be in the exhibition in Saudi Arabia, he is preparing for it. He is already training on the court and that is important.

“It is possible that he will play something else, but as of today his schedule is to play the exhibition, in which he will have to be well prepared because the level will be very high. If Rafa tells me that he wants to be in Malaga, I know that he will be fine because he is very honest.”

A dominant Davis Cup player, Nadal owns a 29-1 Davis Cup singles record with his lone loss coming to Czechia’s Jiri Novak in his very first Davis Cup tie back in 2004.

Alcaraz and Nadal famously joined forces as team Nadalcaraz at the Paris Olympic Games last summer.

Team USAā€™s Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram led from start to finish defeating Alcaraz and Nadal 6-2, 6-4 to power into the Paris Olympics semifinals.

When it was done, King of Clay Nadal, who vowed to make his retirement decision after the Olympics, stood and waved to every corner of the corner acknowledging the rousing standing ovation from the packed and festive crowd that chanted his name and times throughout the match and tried to rouse the Spanish side in the final game.


Ferrer said Nadal could play singles or doubles or both in the Davis Cup Final 8 depending on his health and form in November.

“I count on Rafa for everything, he can play singles and also in doubles. He is a special and different player who when he competes is capable of everything,” said Ferrer, who captained Spain at the Olympic Games. “There are two months left and I don’t know what the team will be, but all those who are there, except Granollers, can play singles and doubles. They are trained for that.”

The 22-time Grand Slam champion Nadal said in July he would make a retirement decision after the Paris Olympics.

“I try to look ahead and when the Olympics are over I will make the decisions I have to make based on the desire and sensations I have, although for many it makes little sense,” Nadal told the media in Paris. “I’ve been suffering for two years, I’ve had hip surgery, I’ve been recovering for a long time and now I’m feeling better physically.

“Obviously if I feel that I am not competitive I will make the decision to leave, but I have played little to be honest. It’s not easy to recover from hip surgery.”

Previously, Nadal has said it would be “a dream” to close his career playing one final Davis Cup for Spain, calling it “a beautiful competition.”

Former world No. 1 Nadal helped lead Spain to its sixth Davis Cup championship in 2019 as he scored a 6-3, 7-6 victory over Denis Shapovalov in the 2019 Davis Cup final.

The 2024 Davis Cup Final 8 Draw is here:

Italy vs. Argentina

Australia vs. United States

Germany vs. Canada

Netherlands vs. Spain