James Duckworth will headline Captain Lleyton Hewitt’s Culture Amp Australian Davis Cup Team for the first-round qualifier against Ecuador next month.
The World No.86 leads the side after a stellar 2025 season which saw him collect two Challenger singles titles and statement wins over top-30 players Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and Flavio Cobolli.
It will be the Sydneysider’s second Davis Cup appearance, having achieved his dream of playing in the tournament as part of the side which downed Brazil 3-1 in March 2020.
Duckworth will be joined by Aleksandar Vukic, Rinky Hijikata, Jordan Thompson and Thanasi Kokkinakis.
The tie will be held on 7-8 February on the clay courts of the country’s high-altitude capital, Quito, which sits at an elevation of over 2800 metres nestled amid the Andes Mountains.
Currently ranked as the world’s No.4 nation, Australia leads the head-to-head record 1-0 over their opponents, having triumphed 4-1 in 2001.
Hewitt will have fond memories of the tie as a player, where as world No.6 he bested Ecuadorian brothers Giovanni and Nicolas Lapentti, both in straight sets.
Should Australia advance this time around, they will face either Norway or Great Britain in the second round, with the victors progressing to the final eight in Bologna, Italy, in November.
Australia will be hoping to go one-better than last year where they fell to Belgium in the second round, and will be eager to add their illustrious Davis Cup past, having earned 29 titles to sit as one of the most successful nations in the competition’s history.