The United States may be the sole superpower but as far as tennis is concerned, we might as well still be Britain’s backwater colony.

We’re out of the Davis Cup, and let’s face it, we Yanks will always be knocked out in the first round as long as we have to play the Brits (by which I mean Andy Murray). I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: You can say what you want about Andy as a low-rent Hamlet always bemoaning his existential fate, usually in the middle of a match. (Remember the time he was playing Nole at the Aussie Open and got distracted by a feather?) But Andy’s been dandy in Davis Cup, especially against us.

While we do have the No. 1 doubles team in twins Bob and Mike Bryan, they’ll never be enough without marquee singles players. And we’re a long way from John McEnroe and Andre Agassi. ...

The big news out of the Aussie Open is that the Big Four is back.

Andy Murray’s magnificent run – until he collapsed against Novak Djokovic in the final – has returned him to the No. 4 spot behind Nole (No. 1), Roger Federer (No. 2) and Rafael Nadal (No. 3).

Andy’s return has got some fans comparing the Big Four to the Fab Four. (Andy, they say, would be Ringo.) I guess that would make Fed, John; Rafa, Paul; and Nole, George.

As with the Fab Four, there’s been some tension within the Big Four. Nole has said that he’s going to reach out to Andy, who was reportedly upset at possible Nole gamesmanship in the Australian Open final. Nole has denied faking an injury in their final, a taut affair early on.

“If there is a chance, if he’s willing to talk, I’ll talk, no problem,” Nole told Eurosport.com. “I have nothing to hide. I’m not the sort of guy who is pretending, who is trying to do something behind anyone’s back or is saying bad things about anybody, especially about someone I have known for a long time. I have respect for him.”

Perhaps the opportunity will come Feb. 15-28 at the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships. (Gee, how can we tell Dubai is the shopping capital of the world?) There Nole and Andy will be reunited with Fed, but no Rafa.

Though they’re all rivals now, Nole says, “I do look at (Andy), Rafa and Roger as my friends, honestly, because I see them so much, more than my parents and sometimes more than my wife. ...

‘Fifty Shades’ of Davis Cup

The Big Four’s ‘special relationship’