Rafael Nadal’s retirement from tennis was the big talking point from the opening round, as Spain were knocked out by the Netherlands in the quarter-finals.

USA’s tie with Australia also grabbed headlines, with Thanasi Kokkinakis and Ben Shelton breaking records, in their marathon match.

Australia went on to win the tie 2-1, guaranteeing their spot in the semi-finals where they will face off against Italy.

A big win for the Australians in a competition in which they’ve enjoyed so much success in the past, but that doesn’t mean they haven’t stumbled against weaker opposition at times.

1998: When Zimbabwe’s Wayne and Byron Black shocked Australia at the Davis Cup

Perhaps the greatest shock in Davis Cup history came 26 years ago, as one of the most dominant teams in the history of the competition were beaten by minnows Zimbabwe.

Australia led 2-1 after the first three matches of the tie, leaving themselves just one win away from the quarter-finals.

What came next was one of the most surprising comebacks in tennis history, as brothers Wayne and Byron Black managed to turn things around against all odds.

Zimbabwe faced two ‘win or go home’ matches in Victoria, Australia, the first of which came when W. Black took on Mark Woodforde.

W. Black was a big underdog against Woodforde but managed to battle past the Australian in four tight sets, to give his brother the opportunity to clinch the tie in a decider.

It was then B. Black who faced off against Jason Stoltenberg, knowing that a win would see Zimbabwe reach the Davis Cup quarter-finals for the first time in their history.

Stoltenberg levelled things up after dropping the first set, before B. Black won the tie for Zimbabwe, with a four-set win over the Australian.

Zimbabwe had stunned one of the greatest Davis Cup nations and were headed to a quarter-final tie against Italy.

The fairy tale run unfortunately ended there for Zimbabwe, as they were hammered 5-0 by the Italians, but they certainly left their mark on the Davis Cup.

Just three years later, Zimbabwe qualified for the world group for the final time, whilst Australia won their 28th title shortly after in 2003.

The Greatest Davis Cup upsets of all time

Whilst Zimbabwe’s win against Australia may well have been the greatest Davis Cup shock in the competition’s history, there have been plenty of other surprise results over the years.

2011 World Group first round – Kazakhstan defeat Czech Republic 3-2

Kazakhstan had never qualified for the World Group prior to 2011 and found themselves up against it when Tomas Berdych gave the Czech team a 2-1 lead in the tie.

Andrey Golubev and Mikhail Kukushkin helped stun the Czech side as they advanced to the quarter-finals for the first time in the nations history.

It was the beginning of good things for Kazakhstan, who have reached the last eight a further five times since 2011.

2009 World Group quarter-finals – Israel defeat Russia 4-1

The Tel Aviv crowd had gained a lot of notoriety in the Davis Cup for it’s hostility, often making opponents uncomfortable, giving the home side a significant edge.

That seemed to be the case in 2009, as Israel dumped heavy favorites Russia out of the competition with a convincing 4-1 victory.

Former world number one Marat Safin and Igor Kunitsyn fell to Jonathan Erlich and Andy Ram in the doubles, as Israel clinched their spot in the semi-finals.

Their run came to an end against the Spanish however, as even without Rafael Nadal, the Israelis fell to a heavy defeat.

2013 World Group first round – Canada defeat Spain 3-2

Spain have been one of the most successful Davis Cup teams since the turn of the century but fell to one of their most surprising defeats in 2013 as they lost to Canada.

It was Canada’s first appearance in the World Group for nine years, whilst the Spaniards had won three of the past five editions of the tournament.

A team led by Milos Raonic battled past Spain 3-2, before going on to reach the semi-finals, losing out to eventual champions Serbia.

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