John Peers believes the Australians will benefit from their strong history in Brisbane when they take on a tough Group F in the newly launched ATP Cup in January.
Doubles star Peers will be part of an Australian team who take on Germany, Greece and Canada in Brisbane from January 3 in the hope of progressing to Sydney for finals from January 9.
Speaking to emageogroup.com, Peers said while he would have liked to start his year at home in Perth, there were plenty of positives about heading to Brisbane.
Peers has won the men’s doubles title at the Brisbane International three times, while top-ranked singles pair Nick Kyrgios and Alex de Minaur also have strong records at the Brisbane tournament.
“We all play really well in Australia and we have all played really well on that Brisbane centre court,” Peers said. “It definitely feels like a homecourt advantage.
“That’s the exciting part about it, knowing you’ve been there before and had success and really enjoy the atmosphere. It will be a lot of fun getting out there and working hard to get the points for Australia.”
Peers has no idea who he will play doubles with yet but is confident with a range of combinations.
“I won’t know who I play with probably until the last minute but it’s going to be a lot of fun whoever I play with,” Peers said. “We all know each other really well, which always make life a lot easier and I know we’re going to bring a lot of energy and a lot of excitement so it will be good fun playing out there.”
Peers said the fact they will play Davis Cup together in November will only help the team heading in.
“No doubt the team chemistry is going to be amazing between the boys,” Peers said. “It’s going to be interesting how the boys manage their workloads from Davis Cup to starting ATP Cup the start of the year, but I know it’s going to be exciting, especially to play in Australia.
“We always get excited to wear the green and gold and when you get to do it in Australia it’s even more special.
“It’s a great week of the year to be able to put a team event in and I know a lot of the guys want a few matches under our belts before we start off and I know all the Australian boys always play well when we’ve got a team atmosphere and a team together.”
Peers recently enjoyed a rare couple of weeks at home in Perth before the Asia swing.
He recently welcomed second child, Harper, into the world.
“It’s going really well, and it was great to have an opportunity to be home for a few weeks,” Peers said.