EDMONTON, September 15, 2017 (Press Release)
The official draw for the Davis Cup by BNP Paribas World Group play-off tie between Canada and India was held on Thursday at Edmonton City Hall, and determined the match-ups for the upcoming weekend’s action. Canada and India will square off on an indoor hard court at Northlands Coliseum in Edmonton from September 15-17, with the winner competing in the World Group for 2018, and the losing nation to be relegated to its respective zonal group.
The Canadian Davis Cup team consisting of Daniel Nestor (Toronto), Vasek Pospisil (Vancouver), Denis Shapovalov (Richmond Hill, Ont.), and Brayden Schnur (Pickering, Ont.) will take on India in two singles matches on Friday, a doubles match on Saturday, and two reverse singles matches on Sunday. At the helm for Team Canada is longtime Canadian Davis Cup team captain Martin Laurendeau.
Shapovalov and Schnur were selected by Laurendeau to play singles, while Indian team captain Mahesh Bhupathi nominated Ramkumar Ramanathan and Yuki Bhambri. The doubles teams will be Nestor and Pospisil for Canada, and Rohan Bopanna and Purav Raja for India. Bhupathi made one nomination change to his originally-named team, replacing Saketh Myneni with Raja.
Weekend match-ups:
| Event | Representing Canada | Representing India |
| 1st Singles Rubber – Friday, September 15 – 3 p.m. MT | Brayden Schnur (world No. 202) | Ramkumar Ramanathan (world No. 154) |
| 2nd Singles Rubber – Friday, September 15 | Denis Shapovalov (world No. 51) | Yuki Bhambri (world No. 157) |
| Doubles Rubber – Saturday, September 16 – 1 p.m. MT | Daniel Nestor (world No. 43) / Vasek Pospisil (world No. 111) | Rohan Bopanna (world No. 19) / Purav Raja (world No. 56) |
| 3rd Singles Rubber – Sunday, September 17 – 1 p.m. MT | Denis Shapovalov (world No. 51) | Ramkumar Ramanathan (world No. 154) |
| 4th Singles Rubber – Sunday, September 17 | Brayden Schnur (world No. 202) | Yuki Bhambri (world No. 157) |
“After today’s draw ceremony and a solid week of preparation, we are excited to kick off the weekend of tennis,” said Laurendeau. “India will provide us with a tough challenge but we feel ready and with Daniel and Vasek leading the team and providing their veteran experience to Denis and Brayden, paired with the support of the Edmonton crowd, it should be a fantastic weekend.”
A victory would see Canada remain in the prestigious World Group for a seventh straight year in 2018, while a loss would send Canada down to Americas Zone Group I. The team has been a member of the upper echelon of Davis Cup play for the past six years, a Canadian record, making the semifinals in 2013 and quarter-finals in 2015.
