MADRID (AP) — Defending champion Croatia will meet Rafael Nadal's Spain in the first edition of the new Davis Cup Finals in November.
Russia also was drawn into the same three-nation group for the inaugural 18-team tournament that will be played in Madrid.
Friday's draw for the six groups also pitted the United States against Italy and Canada, while France — a finalist the last two years — will play against Japan and Serbia, which is likely to be without top-ranked Novak Djokovic, a critic of the tournament's new format.
The revamped format was developed in a partnership between the International Tennis Federation and Kosmos, an investment group founded by Spanish soccer player Gerard Pique.
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