"Andy is not going to be difficult to get recalling on what needs to be done"
Friday 22 November 2019 20:07, UK
Captain Leon Smith will mull over whether or not to pick Andy Murray for Great Britain's Davis Cup quarter-final tie against Germany in Madrid on Friday evening.
Jamie Murray and Neal Skupski were Great Britain's heroes once again as a team missing Andy Murray defeated Kazakhstan to set up a quarter-final against Germany.
The former world No 1 ground out a dramatic victory over Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor in nearly three hours on Wednesday but was far from his best, and admitted afterwards that he was carrying extra weight and was not feeling good about his game.
Smith and his players can look forward to a last-eight tie against Germany that on paper appears very tight.
There will be plenty to mull over selection-wise although Kyle Edmund has surely booked his spot in the side along with the doubles pair, leaving Smith to decide whether to recall Andy Murray ahead of Dan Evans.
Smith admitted there will be no miracle return to peak fitness, saying: "It's not going to change huge amounts. But it's important after five weeks of not playing any competitive tennis that you play a match.
"It wasn't his ideal match at all, but it was a match nonetheless, and that gets you going again. And Andy is not going to be difficult to get recalling on what needs to be done.
"It's probably quite a good thing it's a later start tomorrow. We can talk about it tomorrow, see how things are going, obviously do some practice, see how things feel, and then we can make a decision."
Germany do not possess any star names but have two strong singles options in the hugely-experienced Philipp Kohlschreiber and fast-rising Jan-Lennard Struff, while doubles pair Kevin Krawietz and Andreas Mies are the French Open champions.
Jamie Murray said: "We're really excited to be playing them in the quarter-finals. I don't think our guys will hold any fear to play them, and likewise. I think it's going to be a very evenly-matched tie."
Check our news, reports and reaction from all major tennis events by following us on skysports.com/tennis, our app for mobile devices or our Twitter account @skysportstennis.
