Davis Cup Tennis 2015: Semi-Finals Dates, Schedule, Live Stream and Predictions
One of tennis' biggest team tournaments, the Davis Cup, will begin its semifinal stage on Friday, Sept. 18.
The three-day semifinal pits some of the world's best players against each other for international bragging rights.
Let's take a look at the teams involved in the last four, where tennis fans can catch the matches and who I think will be moving on into the finals.
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| Great Britain vs. Australia | Sept. 18-20 | 7:45 a.m. (ET) | 7:50 a.m. | 7:55 a.m. | DavisCup.TV |
| Argentina vs. Belgium | Sept. 18-20 | 7:45 a.m. | 9:50 a.m. | 7:55 a.m. | DavisCup.TV |
Great Britain vs. Australia
Venue: Emirates Arena, Glasgow, Scotland
It's been a meteoric rise for the Great Britain team in this competition over the past five years.
According to DavisCup.com, they were almost relegated to the lowest level of the competition in 2010, but are now one win away from the Davis Cup final.
This will be Great Britain's first semifinal appearance since 1981, while Australia are breaking a nine-year hiatus from the penultimate round.
| Bernard Tomic | 23 | 438 | Andy Murray | 3 | 206 |
| Samuel Groth | 54 | 90 | Kyle Edmund | 100 | N/A |
| Thanasi Kokkinakis | 72 | 144 | Jamie Murray | N/A | 8 |
| Lleyton Hewitt | 286 | 139 | Dominic Inglot | N/A | 26 |
Kyle Edmund, who is the second British singles player behind Andy Murray, has recovered from an ankle problem to take his place in the team, per Piers Newbery of BBC Sport.
Britain's best chance of winning the tie will, of course, be reliant on Murray. The world's third-best tennis player will have to be on the court as much as possible, which means fans will probably see him play in doubles matches as well.
Coach Leon Smith knows his team's success depends on Murray's performance, as he told ESPN.com:
"We're in a good position and are very fortunate to have one of the best players in the world in Andy Murray, who is definitely the strongest in the two teams. A lot lies on his shoulders...
"
Murray also might be driven by his early exit at the recent U.S. Open. A fiery player whose competitive streak makes him seem almost unapproachable, Murray could take his loss in Flushing Meadows and turn it into more motivation.
Joining Murray is his brother, Jamie, who is ranked eighth in doubles play and is having quite a season. With two doubles titles at Hamburg and Brisbane alongside John Peers, the Scot was also a runner-up at the French and U.S. Open this season.
Australia will look for Bernard Tomic to try and neutralize Andy Murray, but I just don't see the 23rd-ranked player taking down the Scot.
Tomic has yet to beat Murray in two career matches, according to MatchStat.com. In fact, he hasn't won a single set and as the only road-block that could slow him down, Great Britain should roll to the finals.
Prediction: Great Britain Advances 4-1
Belgium vs. Argentina
Venue: Forest National, Brussels, Belgium
This is a wonderfully even matchup for a pair of nations that have seen different levels of success in the Davis Cup.
Belgium has not been in a semifinal since 1999, while Argentina are in this stage of the competition for the 10th time in the last 14 years.
| Leonardo Mayer | 39 | 63 | David Goffin | 15 | N/A |
| Federico Delbonis | 65 | 249 | Steve Darcis | 64 | 490 |
| Diego Schwartzman | 68 | 89 | Ruben Bemelmans | 86 | 191 |
| Carlos Berlocq | 137 | 84 | Kimmer Coppejans | 105 | 591 |
All signs seem to point toward Belgium making their way through. In their journey to the semifinal, they have defeated defending champion Switzerland and two-time semifinalists Canada, though both sides were without some of their best players.
But defeating established countries who have seen success in the competition will help establish experience in big moments. They'll need it against an Argentina side who are no strangers to the semifinals.
Yet, they have never won a Davis Cup. In fact, they've only made the final three times out of nine previous trips to the semis.
With headliners on each side like Leonardo Mayer and David Goffin, Argentina and Belgium have a nice supporting cast who are ranked in both the singles and doubles game.
According to Goffin, the venue might provide the deciding factor as he told DavisCup.com:
"It will be a tough tie against Argentina, but it’s better for us to play at home. I think there will be great support for us and I think against Argentina we have a small chance to go to a final.
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Playing on the road has proved problematic for Argentina. Of the past three semifinals they've lost in the past five years, two have come on the road which is why I will be taking Belgium to win narrowly.
Prediction: Belgium Advances 3-2
Stats courtesy of DavisCup.com.
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