Why Andy Murray's pledge means this could be the best Davis Cup ever

Murray was instrumental in ending Britain's 79-year wait for the title that culminated with victory over Belgium in Ghent last November and he will be back on court for a first-round tie against Japan in Birmingham on Friday.

Should his side advance past the Kei Nishikori-led Japan, Murray has pledged to play in a potential quarter-final against either Serbia or Kazakhstan that falls between Wimbledon and the Olympics in Rio de Janeiro.

"That's the plan, but it's hypothetical just now. Providing everything goes well, I would play in the Davis Cup, then have a little break and play Toronto and the Olympics, and potentially not play in Cincinnati," Murray told the BBC.

"I've always enjoyed representing my country. Statistically I've played by far my best tennis when I've played for Great Britain."

The 28-year-old sealed the Davis Cup title with a win over Belgium's David Goffin, having contributed to 11 of Britain's 12 winning rubbers in the World Group campaign.

Victory against Japan could see Murray pitted against ATP Tour rival and world number one Novak Djokovic should Serbia also advance.

Murray's very welcome decision is something of a surprise, but great news both for Britain and the Davis Cup itself. In recent years we've begun to suspect that tennis's Big Four might have had a gentleman's agreement between them to give the tournament their utmost so as to ensure they all get a "Davis Cup Win" on their Wikipedia pages: Rafa Nadal's Spain, Novak Djokovic's Serbia, Roger Federer's (and Stan Wawrinka's) Switzerland and Murray's Britain have all won the event in the past six years, often then taking a back seat in subsequent seasons.

That little merry-go-round has meant that we've not seen any of the game's biggest names go up against each other in what would be a stunning Davis Cup occasion. This year, that could change.

Djokovic seems committed to playing throughout the tournament once again - he is expected to play this weekend, for example, despite having an eye injury - and now Murray is setting out his stall to win the tournament again as well.

Then there's Switzerland: Federer and Wawrinka both made the effort to show up for the relegation play-off last year in order to keep their nation in the World Group. Surely that means they will team up to try and win the huge cup again this season? Federer will surely care less about picking up an extra Cincinatti Masters title than he would about grabbing one more Davis Cup triumph.

Best of all, the draw will throw these huge tennis names against each other in the next few months.

Should both Britain and Serbia win, it could all start in the second round with a Murray v Djokovic classic in the quarter-finals in July; whoever prevails looks likely to encounter Switzerland (assuming that Federer and Wawrinka team up to beat first Italy, then either Argentina or Poland) in the semi-finals in September. That will set up the winner for a final against whoever comes out of the bottom half of the draw, which does not include Spain but does include Canada, France, Germany, Czech Republic, USA, Australia, Croatia and Belgium.

Last year might have been the best Davis Cup in living memory for British tennis fans - but with the world's best players all seemingly taking it more seriously than ever, this year could prove to be the best Davis Cup in ages for tennis fans of all nationalities.