Spain head into their Davis Cup qualifier against Chile without Carlos Alcaraz, with the trip to South America shaping up as a demanding assignment.

Alcaraz returned to competition at the US Open after a four-month absence caused by a wrist injury and reached the quarter-finals, but that short comeback window still left him in no position to be considered for team duty. Spain captain David Ferrer said the decision to leave out the world No 3 had effectively been made well before the squad was announced.

“Carlos, until the very last minute, there were doubts about whether or not he would play the US Open, so he was in a difficult position to compete,” Ferrer said.

“Obviously, the Davis Cup was very difficult for him to be with us, so from the very start I knew that scenario was practically impossible.

“Since then, Carlos has been making good progress; he had a great US Open and hopefully we’ll have the chance to reach the finals because he’ll certainly be with us then.”

Spain also do not have world No 30 Alejandro Davidovich Fokina available, which leaves them with a mixed group for the tie in Santiago. The squad is headed by 19-year-old Rafael Jodar, the highest-ranked player at No 14 in the ATP Rankings, and he will make his Davis Cup debut alongside 21-year-old Daniel Meida, ranked No 41, and 20-year-old Martin Landaluce, who sits at No 62.

The more experienced pair, Jaume Munar and Pedro Martinez, both 29, are set to handle doubles duties.

Chile, meanwhile, will look to use home conditions to their advantage. Captain Nicolas Massu said: “My priority was to put Chile among the best in the world. Having an opportunity to play against Spain at home is something we have to take advantage of,” the former world No 9 said.

“We’re going to approach this series with conviction. You live to face the best in the world. This generation can give much more to Chilean tennis.”

Chile advanced by beating a Novak Djokovic-less Serbia 4-0 in the first round of qualifiers, while Spain entered this stage as the runners-up from the 2025 tournament.

Andy Murray will join Jack Draper’s coaching group for the grass-court season, the young Brit announced as he parted ways with Jamie Delgado. The move arrives while Draper deals with another injury setback and prepares to return to competition.

“I am very grateful for everything Jamie Delgado has done for me over these past six months. He is a world-class coach and a great man,” Draper said in a statement.

“In the interim, I will continue to be supported by the excellent team at the LTA, with the addition of Andy Murray, who will be supporting me throughout the grass-court season.”

Murray was Draper’s childhood idol and the two were teammates in Davis Cup in 2023. Murray retired in 2024 and spent six months as a coach in 2025 before parting ways with that player in May. “Honestly, I would coach again but probably not right now,” Murray said in April. A short-term role with Draper for grass fits Murray’s stated preference to limit travel.

Draper has not set a firm date to return but is scheduled to play the HSBC Championships at Queen’s Club before Wimbledon if recovered. Murray’s presence offers grass-court experience: he won Olympic gold at Wimbledon in 2012 and claimed multiple Grand Slam titles, including Wimbledon, becoming the first British man to win the tournament since Fred Perry in 1936.

Murray can also share insights from long injury battles and comebacks. He returned to competitive tennis after hip resurfacing surgery in 2019 and has navigated pressure at the top of the game, reaching world No. 1 and winning two Olympic gold medals and three Grand Slams during an era dominated by the sport’s biggest figures.

Draper’s run of fitness issues has been persistent. After a nine-month layoff with a bone bruise in his arm last year, he skipped the Australian Open and returned to the tour in February. His best result in 2026 to date was a run to the Indian Wells quarterfinals, including a win over Novak Djokovic. A knee injury sustained in Barcelona forced him out of the remainder of the clay season, including Roland Garros. “As gutting as it is to miss another slam, the advice is not to rush straight back into playing five set tennis on clay,” Draper shared on Instagram.

“Off the back of the arm injury I sustained last year, I’ve been restricted with my training and by giving myself the time to heal and build, I can be the player I want to be out there once again. See you soon!”

Jamie Murray confirmed his retirement on social media Wednesday, announcing that his long run in professional tennis is over. The former doubles world No. 1 and seven-time Grand Slam doubles champion posted images spanning his career and wrote that “[his] tennis journey [is coming] to an end after 36 years.”

In the message, Murray acknowledged the role his family played in his career. He thanked his mother Judy and his brother Andy for their support, saying their backing helped him “achieve everything I could in the game.” He added: “I feel very fortunate and privileged for all the amazing experiences this great sport has given me,” the 40-year-old wrote in the Instagram post.

Murray finishes his career with 34 tour-level titles, two of those won alongside his younger brother. The Murray pairing was central to Great Britain’s 2015 Davis Cup triumph, the country’s first Davis Cup victory in 79 years, with the brothers taking crucial doubles matches in the quarterfinal, semifinal and final rounds.

In 2016 Jamie reached a milestone for British doubles players by becoming the first British man to attain the world No. 1 ranking in doubles; he held that position for nine weeks. He also joined Andy as his doubles partner for Andy’s final Wimbledon tournament in 2024.

The social post offered a reflective ending to a career that spanned more than two decades and encompassed Grand Slam titles, a stint at the top of the doubles rankings and a key role in a historic national team victory. Murray’s announcement marks the close of a defining presence in doubles competition and a notable chapter in recent British tennis history.