Great Britain is in the running to host the 2029 World Athletics Championships, according to UK Athletics chief executive Jack Buckner.

The last time the event was staged in the UK was in London in 2017, while Glasgow hosted the World Indoor Championships at the weekend.

Now Buckner has told BBC Sport that UK Sport and UK Athletics are conducting a feasibility study into launching a bid to stage the 2029 event.

“We’d love to have another crack at 2029 and a World Championships,” said Buckner.

“We just do a great job. Everyone talks about the atmosphere at every event we’ve done.

“We first of all have to do a feasibility study and look at what the various options are.”

Buckner indicated that London would be the favoured venue for the event, in light of the successful staging of both the 2017 event and the 2012 Olympics.

“We can’t definitely say it’ll be London, but it would be in our mind given the success of it before,” Buckner added.

“I think London (2017) was transformational and it built off 2012 (the Olympic Games). It was transformational in all sorts of ways.”

Great Britain set a new national record as they qualified for the final of the 4×400 metre relay at the World Athletics Indoor Championships.

Lina Nielsen, Ama Pipi, Hannah Kelly and Jessie Knight won their heat in three minutes, 26.4 seconds in Glasgow.

They finished almost a second ahead of Jamaica, with the Czech Republic third.

“I love this track,” anchor leg Knight told the BBC. “I’m not the best at getting out in the first 200 but I really tried, and not overcooking it as well.

“I’m really happy with that. I felt strong at the end and we’re really excited for the final. We’re going for the win as always.”

The Netherlands, favourites for the gold medal, qualified from the first heat in 3min 27.70sec.

Josh Kerr ended Scotland’s 31-year wait for a world indoor title and did so on home turf as he stormed to 3,000 metres gold in Glasgow.

Kerr powered away on the final lap to win comfortably in seven minutes 42.98 seconds, with defending champion Selemon Barega fading down the final straight as he was beaten to silver by American Yared Nuguse.

After disappointment for Laura Muir in the women’s 3,000m final earlier in the evening, Kerr’s victory sparked huge celebrations in the Emirates Arena.

“I think I burned more energy celebrating than I did in the race, which is a bit embarrassing,” Kerr, the world 1500m champion outdoors, said on BBC Sport. “This competition is so important.

“I’ve come to championships before not ready to have a real go at it and I feel I’ve let the UK audience down a bit in the way I’ve performed in front of them. It was really important to come here fit and ready to go and really execute.

“I came in without a solid plan, just really fluid. I wanted to make sure I wasn’t acting emotionally.

“I kept a patient head and then I could really send it with 400 metres to go.”

Muir set a season’s best time of 8mins 29.76secs, but that was only good enough for fifth as American Elle St Pierre took the win ahead of Ethiopia’s Gudaf Tsegay.

St Pierre’s time of 8:20.87 was a World Indoor Championships record.

Jemma Reekie delighted her home crowd by cruising into the final of the women’s 800m with a “perfect” performance.

The 25-year-old Scot bided her time in second spot before passing Ethiopia’s Habitam Alemu on the final straight to win heat two in commanding fashion in a time of 1:58.28.

World number five Reekie progresses to Sunday’s medal race as the fastest qualifier across the two semi-finals and had a warning for her podium rivals.

She told BBC Sport: “(It was) perfect planning – you’d think Jon (Bigg, her coach) knew a bit about this sport by now. (It was) really good.

“I’m in really good shape. Obviously the final’s going to be really tough, but I want them to know if they’re coming to win on my track they’re going to have to work hard.

“I think it will be a fast one.”

At 19 years and 26 days, Italy’s Mattia Furlani became the youngest long jump medallist in World Indoor Championships history by claiming silver in the men’s event with a leap of 8.22m.

The teenager missed out on the title – to Greece’s Miltiadis Tentoglou – only on countback, with bronze going to Carey McLeod of Jamaica (8.21m).

Britain’s David King qualified for the semi-finals of the men’s 60m hurdles after clocking 7.64 but compatriot Tade Ojora failed to make the cut in his heat.

Amy Hunt fell short in the women’s 60m, finishing fifth in her heat in a time of 7.29.

Jemma Reekie delighted her home crowd in Glasgow by cruising into the final of the women’s 800 metres with a “perfect” performance at the World Indoor Championships.

The 25-year-old Scot bided her time in second spot before passing Ethiopia’s Habitam Alemu on the final straight to win heat two in commanding fashion in a time of one minute 58.28 seconds.

World number five Reekie progresses to Sunday’s medal race as the fastest qualifier across the two semi-finals and had a warning for her podium rivals.

She told BBC Sport: “(It was) perfect planning – you’d think Jon (Bigg, her coach) knew a bit about this sport by now! (It was) really good.

“I’m in really good shape. Obviously the final’s going to be really tough but I want them to know if they’re coming to win on my track they’re going to have to work hard.

“I think it will be a fast one.”

Great Britain’s Katarina Johnson-Thompson claimed her first global title on this day in 2018, winning the pentathlon at the World Indoor Championships in Birmingham.

The then 25-year-old finished 50 points ahead of Austria’s Ivona Dadic and 113 in front of Cuba’s Yorgelis Rodriguez to take victory with 4750 points.

It ended a series of disappointments in heptathlon after she finished fifth at the 2017 World Championships in London, sixth at the Rio 2016 Olympics and 28th at the World Championships in Beijing the year before that.

Johnson-Thompson said: “I am so happy. I have a busy year and this gives me confidence and belief going to the Commonwealth Games (in Gold Coast that April) that I can compete at a certain level and come away with a medal and not screw it up.

“It means the world. It is something I have been trying to do since 2012 when I stepped onto the international scene.

“I was disappointed last year I wasn’t able to do it outdoors.

“After the last couple of years I have had, there was no pressure on me because I have not done too well.

“I am just happy that I can kick start this year as a gold medallist.”

Johnson-Thompson went on in 2018 to claim gold for England at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games and silver at the European Championships in Berlin.

She has since secured world heptathlon titles in 2019 in Doha and 2023 in Budapest, while she retained her Commonwealth title in Birmingham in 2022.

Sky Brown’s Olympic surfing dream was wiped out after she failed to qualify for Paris 2024 at the ISA World Surfing Games in Puerto Rico.

The 15-year-old was hoping to represent Team GB in both surfing and skateboarding at this summer’s Games in the French capital.

But her quest for qualification in the former was extinguished by a third-placed finish in the sixth repechage on Friday, behind 14-year-old Chinese surfer Yang Siqi and Janire Gonzalez-Etxabarri of Spain.

She registered scores of 4.53 and 4.33 from her two best attempts for a combined total of 8.86 in the waters off Arecibo.

Fellow teenager Yang won the heat with 11.83 points, while Gonzalez-Etxabarri posted 11.43 to secure her place in Paris.

Brown is the reigning world champion in park skateboarding, but is greener on the elite surfing circuit.

The Japan-born athlete, who aged 13 won park skateboard bronze in the sport’s debut at Tokyo 2020, recently said it “would mean the world” to be an Olympian in both sports.

Sir Jason Kenny announced his retirement from a glittering racing career to move into coaching on this day in 2022.

Great Britain’s greatest Olympian with seven gold medals to his name, Kenny admitted to being “a little bit sad” as he called time on a phase of his life which had made him a household name.

The then 33-year-old, who had won a stunning keirin gold in Tokyo during the previous summer to claim a seventh Olympic title 13 years after his first in Beijing, had been planning to keep going until the Paris Games in 2024.

However, he admitted the opportunity to coach the British squad was one he could not pass up.

Kenny said: “It wasn’t an easy decision. I genuinely wanted to carry on to Paris, but I creak quite a lot these days and I always knew I wanted to go into coaching off the back of it, and this opportunity came along.

“I am a little bit sad, to be honest, because all I’ve known is riding and competing, but I’m quite excited to get stuck into the job.”

Kenny replaced Scott Pollock, who had served as sprint coach in an interim role following the dismissal of Kevin Stewart in November 2020.

He had retired once before, silently stepping away after winning team sprint, individual sprint and keirin gold at the 2016 Rio Games, without announcing his decision until he reversed it a year later.

Kenny said: “Last time, I didn’t realise it, but I was just cooked. I’d never really taken a break [in 10 years], so I just stepped away. Because I never planned on coming back, I completely switched off and got that re-fresh.

“In Rio, I was quite happy to see the back of it. But then since coming back and being refreshed, it’s a lot harder to walk away.”

Kenny was knighted in the 2022 New Year Honours List, while his wife and fellow cyclist Laura – formerly Trott – received a damehood after establishing herself as Britain’s most decorated female Olympian with five golds.

Lizzy Yarnold became Britain’s most successful Winter Olympian on this day in 2018 when she overcame illness to retain her skeleton title in Pyeongchang.

Yarnold, from Sevenoaks in Kent, snatched victory on her fourth and final run with a new track record to make it back-to-back gold medals after her triumph at Sochi 2014.

Laura Deas claimed bronze as Britain won two medals in the same event for the first time at a Winter Olympics.

Yarnold went into the final day 0.10secs off the pace after complaining of feeling dizzy, but cut the deficit as overnight leader Jacqueline Lolling of Germany slipped back to third place after the third round.

The Sochi 2014 champion trailed Austria’s Janine Flock by 0.02 ahead of the final run, meaning Yarnold was the penultimate slider to take to the track and had to watch her rival’s performance.

The Briton clocked a track record of 51.46secs to take the lead in thrilling fashion and Flock floundered, relinquishing her spot on the podium to spark jubilant celebrations among a sizeable British contingent at the Olympic Sliding Centre, including Welsh racer Deas.

An emotional Yarnold, who became Britain’s most decorated Winter Olympian, said: “I’m overwhelmed and exhausted. I don’t really know how it happened.

“After the first run I wasn’t sure whether I was going to be able to finish the race because my chest infection was so bad I was struggling to breathe and I got here only with the help of my team.

“I guess four years ago, three years ago, the whole team all dared to dream that this was possible and I just went with them all and we managed it.”

With Deas finishing third behind Lolling, and Izzy Atkin having earlier secured bronze in the women’s ski slopestyle, it was the first time Britain had won three Winter Olympic medals on the same day, overtaking the record two from Chamonix in 1924.

Adam Peaty bounced back from individual disappointment to help Great Britain clinch bronze in the 4x100m mixed medley relay at the World Championships in Doha.

The quartet of Medi Harris, Peaty, Matthew Richards and Anna Hopkin finished third in a time of three minutes 40.22 seconds.

Victory went to the United States in 3:40.22, with Australia second in 3:43.12.

Peaty and Hopkin were part of the British 4x100m mixed medley team which won gold and broke the world record at the Tokyo Olympics.

Three-time Olympic champion Peaty, 29, earlier missed out on the medals by finishing fourth in the men’s 50m breaststroke, having claimed bronze over 100m on Monday as he gears up for this summer’s Games in Paris.

Also on Wednesday, Daniel Wiffen made history by becoming Ireland’s first world swimming champion after taking gold in the 800m freestyle final in Doha.

The 22-year-old from County Armagh topped the podium in a time of seven minutes 40.94 seconds.

Wiffen, who was second quickest in qualifying, took the lead with 50 metres to go to claim his first global title ahead of Australia’s Elijah Winnington and Italy’s Gregorio Paltrinieri.

“Obviously the goal coming into this meet was to win a world medal and make the podium for Ireland, win Ireland’s first ever medal at a world championship level,” he said, as reported by swimireland.ie.

“It’s just really cool to say and I’m really happy.”

Wiffen returns to the pool on Saturday morning for the heats of the 1500m freestyle.

Kevin Sinfield will take some time to consider his next campaign after completing the latest energy-sapping fundraising challenge to help people living with motor neurone disease as the push to raise awareness and research for a cure goes on.

Inspired by former Leeds team-mate Rob Burrow, the 43-year-old pushed through a gruelling schedule of running seven ultramarathons in as many days in seven different cities around Britain and Ireland.

Sinfield, the current England rugby union defence coach, had again battled the elements en route to crossing the finishing line to a rapturous welcome on The Mall in London on Thursday afternoon.

The team had taken to the roads once again to raise awareness of MND and funds for five charities supporting people affected by the condition and their families, and also to fund research into effective treatments and ultimately a cure.

Each leg of his latest challenge comprised 27 miles – the conventional marathon distance with an extra mile added to signify how much further people can go to help friends in need.

On Thursday evening, the Motor Neurone Disease Association confirmed with online and other donations, Sinfield’s latest campaign had passed the £777,777 target.

Proceeds from the ‘7in7in7’ initiative will go to mainly to the MND Association and Leeds Hospitals Charity appeal to build the Rob Burrow MND centre in the city.

There will also be donations to the My Name’5 Doddie, the Irish MND Association, the Darby Rimmer MND Foundation and support for the 4ED campaign.

Although taking a well-deserved to reflect with his team on their achievements, Sinfield knows there remains plenty of hard work ahead in the continuing quest for a cure.

“I think we will see,” Sinfield said when asked what other challenges might be on the horizon.

“What I am really conscious of is the team have put so much into the last four that we have done and I can’t do it on my own.

“I know we are extremely passionate about what we have done. We have got some time together on the bus tonight, so we will let everybody settle and enjoy, to celebrate because it has been a really good week.

“I will never say never – there is a big possibility we will go again.

“I think some of that will show in what our grand total ends up being, because we are certainly all conscious of compassion fatigue.

“But we are also really conscious that we are really passionate about the MND community and how we can help it, whether that is through running or not, we are not sure.

“But we are really keen to see the donations and where those end up, because ultimately they are the things that really shift it.

“We want to raise the awareness, we want to change how people feel about the MND community.

“But if we are really going to help them, then we need to continue to raise money so that they can find a cure.”

Sinfield added: “Wherever we have been now, we have had unbelievable support, especially from the MND community, so that needs to continue in some way, shape or form.”

Former England bowler Stuart Broad and Rugby World Cup winner Will Greenwood were among the guests who joined Sinfield during the final leg in London, which had started at Twickenham.

With his latest campaign put to bed, it will not be long before Sinfield’s attentions turn swiftly back to his day job.

“I have got some work to do tomorrow and I will be at a game on Sunday (Sale v Stade Francais), but I will try to catch up on some sleep and I want to see some family,” Sinfield said.

“I was away for five months and then had a busy month getting ready for this, then away again for a week so I am really looking forward to Christmas.”

:: To donate to Kevin Sinfield’s 7 in 7 in 7 quest, visit https://donate.giveasyoulive.com/fundraising/kevin-sinfield

Andy Murray inspired Great Britain to Davis Cup victory for the first time in 79 years on this day in 2015 after success in the final against Belgium.

Britain had last got their hands on the trophy in 1936, when Fred Perry and Bunny Austin helped defeat Australia.

When Murray completed a straight-sets win against David Goffin in Ghent to clinch it, he completed one of the most impressive feats of his career.

The Scot’s 6-3 7-5 6-3 triumph against the Belgian number one at the Flanders Expo was his 11th win in the competition that season.

Murray spearheaded the victory and claimed 11 of the 12 points which Britain needed for the title, eight in singles and three in doubles with brother Jamie. The only player not a member of the Murray family to contribute was James Ward.

Three other players have won 11 rubbers in a season since the current Davis Cup format was introduced in 1981, but Murray became the first to do so all in live rubbers and remain unbeaten.

On their way to victory, Britain defeated the United States 3-2 in Glasgow, France 3-1 in London and Australia 3-2 in the semi-finals in Glasgow before Murray sealed a 3-1 success against Belgium.

Murray said: “I probably haven’t been as emotional as that after a match that I’ve won.

“I’ve been pretty upset having lost matches before. But I’d say that’s probably the most emotional I’ve been after a win.

“It’s incredible that we managed to win this competition. I didn’t know that would ever be possible.”

The Lawn Tennis Association has called on British fans to show respect to opposing players after Novak Djokovic’s spat with supporters at the Davis Cup in Malaga.

Djokovic defeated Cameron Norrie 6-4 6-4 to secure a 2-0 victory for Serbia over Great Britain in the quarter-finals on Thursday evening but was very unhappy when a section of the 5,000-strong British support tried to drown out his post-match interview with drumming.

Djokovic, who had earlier ironically blown kisses to a vocal British fan at the end of the first set, told the supporters: “Learn how to respect players, learn how to behave yourself.” He then added: “No, you shut up, you be quiet,” as the row continued.

British captain Leon Smith played down the incident, arguing that noisy, partisan atmospheres are central to the Davis Cup.

An LTA spokesperson said: “Passion is a unique component of the Davis Cup and it is a competition where emotions run high. We are lucky to have strong travelling support and would always encourage GB supporters to behave with respect for our opposition.”

Rather awkwardly for the governing body, it does provide help to some supporter groups, including the one in question, the Stirling University Barmy Army, to travel to ties in order to create a good atmosphere.

The row overshadowed what was a disappointing end to an encouraging season in the competition for Smith’s men.

Norrie played well and kept the scoreline relatively close against the world number one without ever remotely threatening an upset but the damage was done when Jack Draper lost out 7-6 (2) 7-6 (6) to Miomir Kecmanovic in the opening rubber.

It was only the 21-year-old’s second Davis Cup match and one he will unquestionably learn from, with Draper set to be central to Britain’s hopes over the next decade and more.

He has recovered well from an injury-hit first two-thirds of the season, reaching the fourth round of the US Open and his first ATP Tour final in Sofia earlier this month to pull his ranking back up to 60.

“I’m really proud of the improvements I made this year,” said Draper. “I think, though I lost the match, I’m trying to play in the right way. I didn’t serve great, but I’m trying to look to come forward a lot more.

“I think it’s only exciting with me. I’ve got so much to improve on. That’s an amazing thing. Just reset and look for improvements.”

Draper also backed Smith to continue his long tenure in the captain’s role. It is now eight years since the Scot guided Britain to a stunning Davis Cup title, and next year will be his 14th at the helm.

“He creates an amazing environment,” said Draper. “We all want to play for him, all want to work hard. He only is positive around us in my opinion.

“It’s up to him if he wants to step down or not, but I’d be very happy if he stayed on and we can keep playing, because he’s a great captain, a good guy. He gives us a lot.”

Without a peak Andy Murray, Smith has had more difficult selection decisions to make, and last year’s group-stage exit ended in recriminations when Dan Evans claimed he should have been picked for doubles.

He got his wish this year, which paid off when he played the key role in helping Britain reach the last eight only for a calf injury to rule him out of this week’s event.

Had Evans been available rather than cheering from the stands, things might have turned out differently, and, with Murray also sidelined, Smith was left with a team that picked itself.

He will hope that Norrie rediscovers his best form next season having now lost three Davis Cup rubbers in a row, and there were some encouraging signs against Djokovic despite the final result.

Britain will find out on Sunday if they have been awarded a wild card for September’s group stage or must play a qualifier in February, while Djokovic and Serbia have their eyes on the big prize and a crunch semi-final against Italy on Saturday.

The match will see Djokovic clash with Jannik Sinner for the third time in a week and a half in the biggest Davis Cup singles match for many years.

Sinner handed Djokovic his first defeat since the Wimbledon final in the group stage of the ATP Finals only for the world number one to take revenge in the final.

Djokovic, who is unbeaten in Davis Cup singles rubbers since 2011, said: “We’re developing a nice rivalry lately. I have tons of respect for him.

“He’s been playing arguably the tennis of his life. I saw a little bit of the singles and doubles that he won (against the Netherlands on Thursday). Amazing. He really played on a high level. I could see that he was very pumped to play for his nation.

“I’m not playing bad myself. So it’s going to be, I think, a great match.”

Novak Djokovic told rowdy British fans to “shut up” after leading Serbia to a 2-0 victory in the Davis Cup quarter-finals in Malaga.

The world number one showed his annoyance with a section of the 5,000-strong British support by cupping his ear and blowing ironic kisses at the end of the first set of his 6-4 6-4 victory over Cameron Norrie.

When the same group of fans began drumming during Djokovic’s on-court interview, the Serbian responded: “Learn how to respect players, learn how to behave yourself,” before adding, “no, you shut up, you be quiet”.

It was a sour end to what was a disappointing evening for Britain, with the writing on the wall once Jack Draper fell to a 7-6 (2) 7-6 (6) defeat by Miomir Kecmanovic in a opening rubber that was a must-win.

On his spat with the supporters, Djokovic said: “In the Davis Cup, it’s normal that sometimes fans step over the line but, in the heat of the moment, you react too, and you show that you don’t allow this kind of behaviour.

“They can do whatever they want, but I’m going to respond to that. I was trying to talk and they were purposely starting to play the drums so that I don’t talk and they were trying to annoy me the entire match. So we had a little bit of a chat in the end.”

Britain’s dramatic success against France in Manchester in September had sent them through to the final eight event for the first time in the revamped format.

The tie did not get under way until 6.10pm, more than two hours later than billed, because of the over-running first match of the day between Italy and the Netherlands.

The near-capacity crowd, which also included a sizeable number of Serbian supporters, gave the event the sort of authentic Davis Cup feel that has so often been missing since the switch from the home-and-away format.

Among those sat in the stands at the Palacio de Deportes Martin Carpena was Dan Evans, who had hoped to build on his brilliant performances in Manchester before a calf injury prematurely ended his season.

But even the British number two would have had his work cut out against an inspired Kecmanovic, who was chosen ahead of the higher-ranked Laslo Djere and fully justified the decision.

Draper had the better form coming in having reached his first ATP Tour final this month and had beaten Kecmanovic – ranked five places higher at 55 – earlier this year, but the Serbian was dominant on serve and edged two tie-breaks.

It was only the 21-year-old’s second Davis Cup rubber and he admitted knowing Djokovic was looming added to the nerves he felt.

“That’s seemingly a must-win match for me,” said Draper. “It’s definitely a tough challenge to go out there knowing that there is a lot more pressure on me to win the match.

“That’s the kind of pressure that, if I want to be a top player, I have to cope with and have to perform under. It’s tough not to get the win today. I gave it all I had mentally. I didn’t do a few things as well as I wanted to, but he played a great match.”

Djokovic had lost only six of his 61 previous matches this season, with just one defeat since the Wimbledon final, while his Davis Cup record is utterly formidable.

It is 12 years since he lost a singles match in the competition, and even that was by retirement, with now 21 straight wins and only four sets dropped.

Norrie had managed only a single set in three previous meetings and has endured a miserable run since the clay-court swing back in the spring, but he was captain Leon Smith’s only option once Andy Murray pulled out with a minor shoulder injury.

He did not put in a bad performance by any means, but was fire-fighting from the moment he was broken at 2-2 in the opening set and won only eight points on Djokovic’s serve during the contest.

While Serbia are a step closer to the trophy, Britain must start again in February in the qualifiers – barring an unlikely wild card through to September’s group stage.

Novak Djokovic ended Great Britain’s hopes of winning another Davis Cup title as he led Serbia to a 2-0 quarter-final victory in Malaga.

Britain’s dramatic success against France in Manchester in September had sent them through to the final eight event for the first time in the revamped format.

But they fell at the first hurdle, with Miomir Kecmanovic defeating Jack Draper 7-6 (2) 7-6 (6) before Djokovic comfortably saw off Cameron Norrie 6-4 6-4 to send a jubilant Serbia through to a semi-final against Italy on Saturday.

Given the presence of Djokovic, who cemented his position at the top of the sport by winning a seventh ATP Finals title on Sunday, Britain’s hopes depended on Draper winning the first rubber.

The tie did not get under way until 6.10pm, more than two hours later than billed, because of the over-running first match of the day between Italy and the Netherlands.

There were around 5,000 British fans in a near-capacity crowd, giving the event the sort of authentic Davis Cup feel that has so often been missing since the switch from the home-and-away format.

Among those sat in the stands at the Palacio de Deportes Martin Carpena was Dan Evans, who had hoped to build on his brilliant performances in Manchester before a calf injury prematurely ended his season.

But even the British number two would have had his work cut out against an inspired Kecmanovic, who was chosen ahead of the higher-ranked Laslo Djere and fully justified the decision.

Draper had the better form coming in having reached his first ATP Tour final this month and had beaten Kecmanovic – ranked five places higher at 55 – earlier this year, but the Serbian was dominant on serve and edged two tie-breaks.

Draper hung on during the first set, saving two break points at 3-4 and then two set points at 4-5 with some gutsy play only to double fault twice in the tie-break.

His chance came when he recovered from 2-5 to level at 5-5 in the second tie-break but, despite saving a match point, he could not force a decider.

It was only the 21-year-old’s second Davis Cup rubber and he admitted knowing Djokovic was looming added to the nerves he felt.

“That’s seemingly a must-win match for me,” said Draper. “It’s definitely a tough challenge to go out there knowing that there is a lot more pressure on me to win the match.

“That’s the kind of pressure that, if I want to be a top player, I have to cope with and have to perform under. It’s tough not to get the win today. I gave it all I had mentally. I didn’t do a few things as well as I wanted to, but he played a great match.”

Djokovic had lost only six of his 61 previous matches this season, with just one defeat since the Wimbledon final, while his Davis Cup record is utterly formidable.

It is 12 years since he lost a singles match in the competition, and even that was by retirement, with now 21 straight wins and only four sets dropped.

Norrie had managed only a single set in three previous meetings and has endured a miserable run since the clay-court swing back in the spring, but he was captain Leon Smith’s only option once Andy Murray pulled out with a minor shoulder injury.

He did not put in a bad performance by any means, but was fire-fighting from the moment he was broken at 2-2 in the opening set, throwing everything he had at Djokovic to fight back from 0-40 in his next service game.

The Serbian lost just three points on serve in the first set – and only eight in the match – and blew kisses towards a vocal British fan who had been warned by the umpire after clinching it to love.

Norrie promptly dropped serve to start the second set before again hanging on grimly, this time saving five break points at 1-3, but Djokovic was able to stay in his comfort zone through to the finish line.

While Serbia are a step closer to the trophy, Britain must start again in February in the qualifiers – barring an unlikely wild card through to September’s group stage.

Great Britain’s hopes of reaching the Davis Cup semi-finals were hanging by a thread after Jack Draper lost the opening rubber to Serbia’s Miomir Kecmanovic in Malaga.

Draper’s 7-6 (2) 7-6 (6) defeat left Cameron Norrie needing to hand Novak Djokovic just his seventh loss of the season to send the tie to a deciding doubles.

Serbia sprang a surprise by picking Kecmanovic, ranked five places above Draper at 55 in the world, ahead of their number two Laslo Djere, but the 24-year-old fully justified the decision with an impressive display.

Twenty-one-year-old Draper was unable to impose his big game on the match and came out on the wrong end of two tie-breaks in a contest lasting two hours and two minutes.

The tie did not get under way until 6.10pm, more than two hours later than billed, because of the over-running first match of the day between Italy and the Netherlands.

Around 5,000 British fans, including Dan Evans, who was forced out of the event through injury after playing the leading role in qualification, made up the majority of a virtually full crowd at the Palacio de Deportes Martin Carpena.

The International Tennis Federation’s decision to move away from the traditional home-and-away format and to a World Cup-style event has been unpopular with players and fans, but this was the sort of occasion they would have envisaged.

It was a huge moment for Draper, who only played his first match in the competition in September in Manchester and now found British hopes depending on him given the presence of Djokovic in the second rubber.

He could draw on better recent form than Kecmanovic, having reached his first ATP Tour final in Sofia earlier this month while the Serbian had lost his last four matches, and also won their only previous meeting on clay in May.

But Kecmanovic is a quality player who was ranked in the top 30 at the start of the year and, despite three aces in his first service game from Draper, it was the Serbian who was the more impressive in the early stages.

Draper had to dig deep to save two break points in a long eighth game and then found himself facing two set points at 4-5, which he again fought off in gutsy fashion.

But two double faults cost him dearly in the tie-break and left him with a lot of work to do to turn the match around.

Neither man faced a break point in the second set, but again it was Kecmanovic who looked the more convincing on serve.

After losing five points in a row from 2-0 up in the tie-break, Draper did well to level at 5-5 and then save a match point with a volley that just caught the line, but a wayward forehand gave Kecmanovic a second chance and this time the British youngster netted a return.