Lleyton Hewitt's Davis Cup calls answered as Aleksandar Vukic stuns at Shanghai Masters

The Davis Cup will resume a valued tradition in 2025 after it was announced on Friday that the tournament will return to the traditional home-and-away ties in the September stage - moving away from the current four-group stage events - much to the relief of Australian captain Lleyton Hewitt. The historic tournament has undergone several changes in recent years, with the most recent format featuring a group stage held just after the US Open.

Four cities over the past three years have hosted groups of four teams for a round-robin event that whittled down 16 teams to eight for the Davis Cup finals. But the neutral venue ties led to near-empty arenas and players battling through intense workloads, with this year's event coming just days after the final grand slam of the year.

But now the International Tennis Federation has opted to return to home-and-away ties, with the winning seven teams joining the host nation at a final-eight event in November. The news will be undoubtedly welcomed by Australian team captain Hewitt, who has long been a fierce critic of the format changes. The Aussie has previously blasted the format changes, stating they have 'gutted' and 'sold out the soul' of the iconic tournament.

"The Davis Cup was held in the highest regard, up there with the pinnacle of our sport in tennis—with matches played over five sets," Hewitt previously said. "We threw that out the door and then we’ve thrown the home and away out the door as well. Playing a qualifying tie here or there, best of three sets, is not the same as having home and away, main draw matches over the year." But the move back to home-and-away September stage ties will return a vital tradition, with the Billie Jean King Cup - the women's equivalent event - also moving to an eight-team finals event next year from the current 12.

In a statement announcing the change on Friday, ITF president David Haggerty said: "Today's news is another positive step forward for both the Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge and Davis Cup, and I am excited for the future of both competitions.

"The format amendments aim to build on the success we have seen across both events in recent years and contribute towards our long-term ambition to bring them more in sync under the World Cup of Tennis banner."

Alexander Vukic upsets Casper Ruud at Shanghai Masters

Meanwhile, there is a new Aussie male on the rise in the tennis world, with Aleksandar Vukic registering the first top-10 win of his career at the Shanghai Masters. On Friday, the 28-year-old scored a dominant straight sets win over World No.9 Casper Ruud in China - undoubtedly the biggest scalp of his tennis career.

In Vukic's first round match, he found himself down a set, only to rally and dispatch World No.70 Corentin Moutet. In that match he found himself 4-0 down in the first set and determined to not make a slow start again he came out firing against Ruud.

Vukic oozed composure as he took the first set 6-4 before taking the second 6-4 to round out a dominant performance that lasted just one hour and 19 minutes. The 28-year-old dominated from the outset against the two-time grand slam finalist, seizing his first breakpoint opportunity in the seventh game and converting again on his next opportunity early in the second set. He then closed out his win by holding serve to love, sealing a monumental victory on his first match point.

“It was a very tough match but I’m playing well, so I didn’t want to change too much," Vukic said after the win over Ruud. “(I wanted to) really stick to my game plan and take it to Casper. I think I did a good job.”

Vukic's win sets a third-round clash with World No.33 Czech Tomas Machac, who beat Vukic in their only match in Vienna last year. While fellow Australians Alexei Popyrin and Jordan Thompson, seeded No.20 and No.26 respectively, will begin their Shanghai Masters campaigns on Saturday. Popyrin faces 55th-ranked Serbian Miomir Kecmanovic, while Thompson takes on World No.40 Dutchman Tallon Griekspoor.

with AAP