Australia humiliated by Ecuador in Davis Cup qualifier

Australia slumped to their worst Davis Cup result under long-serving captain Lleyton Hewitt, suffering a 3-1 humiliation away to lowly Ecuador in the first round of qualifiers on Sunday.

With Australia's No 1 Alex De Minaur opting out of the tie in Quito, the 28-time champions crashed out when Rinky Hijikata and Jordan Thompson were beaten 7-6(5) 6-4 by Gonzalo Escobar and Diego Hidalgo in the decisive doubles rubber.

Ecuador shocked Australia in this years Davis Cup Qualifiers 1st Round, beating them 3-1. Australia have previously won the tournament 28 times, and Ecuador are the lowest ranked team in this years qualifiers! 🤯

They advance to the Qualifiers second round where they’ll be… pic.twitter.com/pzVLh8N57B

Lacking a player in the top 200, Ecuador set up their unlikely triumph on home clay by claiming both the opening singles rubbers on Saturday.

Alvaro Guillen Meza downed Hijikata in three sets before 257th-ranked Andres Andrade shocked world number 86 James Duckworth, also in three.

Ecuador next face Britain in the second round of qualifiers in September.

With De Minaur leading the charge, Australia reached back-to-back finals in 2022-23 and the semifinals in 2024.

However, the Ecuador shock continues the team's decline following their failure to reach the eight-nation Finals in 2025, Hewitt's 10th year in charge.