Davis Cup

Tennis Channel Extends Partnership To Broadcast Davis Cup, Billie Jean King Cup

August 4, 2025 by Randy Walker Leave a Comment

Tennis Channel and the International Tennis Federation (ITF) have extended their long-running partnership with the Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge^TM and Davis Cup, the World Cup of Tennis events for women and men, respectively.

Under the new multi-year agreement, Tennis Channel will remain the exclusive U.S. home for both tournaments across its linear channel, app and TennisChannel.com, continuing a relationship that began in 2009. The deal now runs through 2027 for the Billie Jean King Cup and 2028 for the Davis Cup. The extension also marks a significant expansion of Tennis Channel’s international reach, with rights to broadcast in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Additionally, rights for the Billie Jean King Cup have been secured in Spain – a new and important market where interest in women’s tennis continues to see strong growth.

The ITF is the global governing body of tennis and organises the Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge and Davis Cup, the two largest annual international team competitions in the sport. Both events are played annually, with nations from across the world competing at a variety of stages throughout the year for the chance to progress to the next level.

Both competitions culminate with finals events that feature the year’s top eight nations competing in a knock-out competition for the right to be crowned world champions.

The Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge Finals will take place in Shenzhen, China, September 16-21, while the Davis Cup Final 8 is set for Bologna, Italy, November 18-23.

David Haggerty, ITF President, said “For many years Tennis Channel has helped bring the World Cup of Tennis to millions of people around the world and this extension is great news for both Billie Jean King Cup and Davis Cup. We look forward to continuing to work alongside Tennis Channel to continue this growth for years to come.”

The United States has won the Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge 18 times and the Davis Cup 32 times, both records.

“Davis Cup and Billie Jean King Cup are iconic events in our sport and pillars of Tennis Channel’s schedule throughout the year,” said Jeff Blackburn, Chairman and CEO, Tennis Channel. “We’ve had a long-running partnership with the ITF and can’t wait for this next chapter with them. Together we want to shine as much light as we can on the history and passion surrounding the cups, and grow awareness and fans in both the U.S. and other countries.”

The Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge remains the world’s largest annual international team competition in women’s tennis, with nations competing year-round for a place in the Finals. As the women’s World Cup of Tennis it brings together top players to represent their countries on a global stage, continuing a tradition of national pride and elite-level competition.

“We’re proud to strengthen our partnership with Tennis Channel, particularly in key international markets such as the United States, United Kingdom, Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and now Spain, where women’s tennis continues to flourish. As the world’s leading platform for women’s national team tennis, the Billie Jean King Cup celebrates national pride, incredible talent and unique spirit on a global stage. This collaboration reflects our long-term commitment to showcasing the power of women’s tennis and expanding its reach to even more fans around the world,” said Kerstin Lutz, CEO of Billie Jean King Cup Limited.

This rights announcement comes on the heels of roster announcements made for the eight countries that have qualified for the Billie Jean King Cup Finals in September. Among the stars who will try to help their nations become world champions are Jessica Pegula (USA), Zheng Qinwen (China), Madison Keys (USA), Jasmine Paolini (Italy), Paula Badosa (Spain), Naomi Osaka (Japan), Elena Rybakina (Kazakhstan), Emma Raducanu (Great Britain) and Elina Svitolina (Ukraine).

When A Riot Ensued During A Davis Cup Match

March 11, 2024 by Randy Walker Leave a Comment

By Randy Walker

@TennisPublisher

Has there ever been a more chaotic scene on a tennis court than the scenes during the final-day of the France vs. Paraguay Davis Cup match in 1985? While the 1987 Davis Cup tie between the United States and Paraguay is a lot more well known for its crazy atmosphere, that ended in the crowd storming the court following Victor Pecci’s fifth and decisive win over Aaron Krickstein in Paraguay’s 3-2 upset win, Paraguay’s win over France two years earlier was even more frenzied and tumultuous.

There is no video footage that can be found on YouTube of the events that unfolded, but you can read details from my book “On This Day In Tennis History” (for sale and download as a paperback, electronic book and audio book here: https://a.co/d/eAx3PDh) of the events that unfolded on March 11, 1985.

March 11, 1985 – Paraguayan riot police storm the court to protect French players after Yannick Noah, star player of the French Davis Cup team, and his captain Jean Paul Loth, charge onto the court and allegedly strike a linesman, Roberto Velazquez, who the French accuse of making distracting noises against their teammate Henri Leconte. With Leconte trailing Victor Pecci 6-3, 1-1 in the fifth and decisive match of the France vs. Paraguay series, Noah and Loth charge the court and confront the linesman. The Associated Press reports that “There was danger of a riot as many of the more than 3,000 fans in the national stadium on the outskirts of the capital surged out of the stands toward the Frenchmen. Policemen with sticks moved in and, according to witnesses, struck at both the French players and the fans, finally restoring order.” Noah denies hitting the linesman, stating to the Associated Press, “We had a lot of problems with the umpires and with the crowds during the whole tie…One of the linesmen was making a noise every time Henri was trying to serve – every time. We went to talk to him, and that was it…This guy was too much. If he was some guy from the crowd, we wouldn’t bother, but he was a linesman. He’s a player. Two years ago, when we played Paraguay (in Davis Cup), he was a player.” After officials threaten to postpone the matches, order is restored and Pecci goes on to win the decisive match 6-3, 6-4, 3-6, 7-5. Pandemonium breaks out after Pecci’s win as French players, officials and media run for their safety. Says Noah, “At the end of the match, some of the guys (spectators) jumped on the team, and one of the members of the French press was knocked out. We had to send him to a hospital. It was scary. When we left the stadium, we had police following us all over.”

USTA, U.S. Davis Cup Captain Bob Bryan Announce 2023 U.S. Davis Cup Team

August 14, 2023 by Randy Walker Leave a Comment

The USTA and United States Davis Cup Captain Bob Bryan announced that Frances Tiafoe, Tommy Paul, Mackenzie McDonald, Austin Krajicek and Rajeev Ram will represent the U.S. in the 2023 Davis Cup Finals — Group Stage matches September 12-17 in Split, Croatia.

The Group Stage consists of four groups of four nations competing to advance to the eight-nation knockout stage that will crown this year’s Davis Cup champion November 21-26 in Malaga, Spain. The U.S. is competing in Group D in Split and will play Croatia, Finland and the Netherlands in a round-robin competition where the top two finishers in the Group advance to Malaga. Each matchup is a best-of-three tie featuring two singles and one doubles match. The dates and times of the Americans’ matches are below.

Tickets are available via the Davis Cup website. Apply for media credentials by clicking here, or emailing mediacredentials@daviscup.com.

Group D (Split):

All matches begin at 3 p.m. local time (9 a.m. ET)

United States vs. Croatia; Wednesday, September 13

United States vs. the Netherlands; Thursday, September 14

United States vs. Finland; Saturday, September 16

Tiafoe, 25, is ranked a career-high No. 10 in singles, having made his Top 10 debut earlier this summer. He’s been a part of the Davis Cup team since 2018 and has competed for the U.S. in the Finals each of the last two years.

Paul, 25, is ranked a career-high No. 13 in singles, having defeated world No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz last week en route to his first ATP Masters 1000 semifinal in Toronto. He’s played in seven Davis Cup ties for the U.S. since debuting in 2020 and has a 5-1 singles record.

McDonald, 28, is ranked a career-high No. 43 in singles. He made his Davis Cup debut with a singles victory in February’s Qualifying-round defeat of Uzbekistan in Tashkent.

Krajicek, 33, is ranked No. 3 in doubles and held the world No. 1 doubles ranking earlier this summer after winning his first Grand Slam title at the French Open. He made his Davis Cup debut in February’s Qualifying tie vs. Uzbekistan, where he and Ram clinched victory.

Ram, 39, is ranked No. 4 in doubles and is a former doubles world No. 1 himself. He’s played in six ties for the U.S., going 5-1 in doubles since debuting in 2021.

The U.S. holds an overall 225-77 record in Davis Cup competition and has won the title a record 32 times. For more information, including access to player and historical records, visit www.usta.com/daviscup or www.daviscup.com.

# # #

The USTA is the national governing body for the sport of tennis in the U.S. and the leader in promoting and developing the growth of tennis at every level — from local communities to the highest level of the professional game. A not-for-profit organization, it invests 100% of its proceeds in growing the game. It owns and operates the US Open, one of the highest-attended annual sporting events in the world, and launched the US Open Series, linking summer WTA and ATP World Tour tournaments to the US Open. In addition, it owns approximately 120 Pro Circuit events throughout the U.S. and selects the teams for the Davis Cup, Billie Jean King Cup, Olympic and Paralympic Games. The USTA’s philanthropic entity, the USTA Foundation, provides grants and scholarships in addition to supporting tennis and education programs nationwide to benefit under-resourced youth through the National Junior Tennis & Learning (NJTL) network. For more information about the USTA, go to USTA.com or follow the official accounts on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter (X) and TikTok.

Draw announced for Davis Cup by Rakuten Finals 2022

April 27, 2022 by tennisbloggers Leave a Comment

The International Tennis Federation (ITF) and Kosmos Tennis have announced the draw for the Davis Cup by Rakuten Finals 2022, which was conducted today in Malaga.

The group stage will be held across four cities – Bologna, Glasgow, Hamburg and Valencia – on 14-18 September 2022. The top two teams in each group will advance to the knock-out stage, which will take place at the Palacio de Deportes José María Martín Carpena in Malaga on 21-27 November 2022.

The full draw is listed below:

Group A, Bologna Italy:

Croatia (1)

Italy (*)

Argentina

Sweden

Group B

Valencia, ESP

Spain (2) (*)

Canada

Serbia

Korea, Rep.

Group C

Hamburg, GER

France (3)

Germany (*)

Belgium

Australia

Group D

Glasgow, GBR

USA (4)

Great Britain (*)

Kazakhstan

Netherlands

(#) = seeded nation; (*) host nation

The draw for the knock-out stage also took place today, with the four group winners drawn against the four group runners-up. Teams competing in the same group will not be able to meet again until the final.

Davis Cup by Rakuten Finals 2022 Quarter-finals

Winner Group A v Runner-up Group D

Winner Group C v Runner-up Group B

Runner-up Group C v Winner Group D

Runner-up Group A v Winner Group B

Jack Sock, Rajeev Ram Put Team USA Over The Top In Davis Cup Win Over Colombia In Reno

March 6, 2022 by tennisbloggers Leave a Comment

An American doubles team of Jack Sock and Rajeev Ram was too much for a Colombian doubles team missing Robert Farah, as the American tandem overwhelmed Juan Sebastian Cabal and substitute Nicolas Barrientos to clinch victory in this Qualifying tie and punch the USA’s ticket to the Davis Cup by Rakuten Finals Group Stages in September.

Sock and Ram won their second straight Davis Cup doubles match together, 6-4, 6-3, as Barrientos was tabbed to sub in for Farah, who had a neck injury. Tommy Paul finished the tie with a 7-5, 7-6(4) win over Nicolas Mejia in a dead singles match.

The Americans will be one of the 16 teams competing in the Group Stages of the 2022 Finals September 14-18 in a location yet to be announced. The top eight nations from the Group Stage advance to the knockout stage of the Finals November 23-27, also in a location yet to be announced, that will crown this year’s Davis Cup champion.

Friday Results

Sebastian Korda (USA) d. Nicolas Mejia (COL), 6-4, 1-6, 6-4

Taylor Fritz (USA) d. Alejandro Gonzalez (COL), 6-1, 6-0

Saturday Results

Jack Sock and Rajeev Ram (USA) d. Juan Sebastian Cabal and Nicolas Barrientos (COL), 6-3, 6-4

Tommy Paul (USA) d. Nicolas Mejia (COL), 7-5, 7-6(4)

U.S. Davis Cup Team In Reno (photo via Mike Lawrence / USTA)

Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul, Sebi Korda Highlight U.S. Davis Cup Team For Face Colombia In Reno

February 2, 2022 by Randy Walker Leave a Comment

The USTA and United States Davis Cup Captain Mardy Fish today announced that Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul, Sebastian Korda, Jack Sock and Rajeev Ram will represent the U.S. for its Davis Cup by Rakuten Qualifying tie vs. Colombia March 4-5 in Reno, Nevada.

Davis Cup is the World Cup of Men’s Tennis and is the largest international team competition in world sport, with nearly 150 nations competing each year. The Qualifier vs. Colombia is a best-of-five match series played over two days, beginning with two singles matches on Friday, March 4. A doubles match and two reverse singles matches will follow on Saturday, March 5. The first to win three of those matches will advance to the 2022 Davis Cup Finals – a 16-nation, multi-city competition held later this year with dates and locations to be announced.

Tickets are on sale and can be purchased at usta.com/daviscup or via Ticketmaster.

The U.S. team competing in Reno is full of the sport’s top young rising stars and established Grand Slam champions.

Fritz, 24, is the top-ranked American man at No. 20 and reached the final 16 at the Australian Open this year. The Californian has competed for the U.S. in Davis Cup since 2019, when, at 21 years old, he became the youngest American to debut in the Top 25 since Andy Roddick in 2004.

Paul, 24, is ranked No. 42 and will be making his second Davis Cup appearance. A former junior French Open champion and 2020 Tokyo Olympian, Paul earned his first career win over a Top 5-ranked opponent and won his first ATP singles title in 2021.

Korda, 21, is ranked No. 43 and will be making his Davis Cup debut. A former junior world No. 1 and one of the sport’s top young rising stars, Korda rose from outside the Top 300 to inside the Top 40 in a span of less than two years and won his first ATP singles title in 2021.

Sock, 29, has been ranked as high as No. 2 in doubles and No. 8 in singles and has been playing Davis Cup since 2015. A three-time Grand Slam doubles champion and 2016 Rio Olympic men’s doubles gold medalist, Sock is 9-4 overall in Davis Cup play with a 5-1 mark in doubles.

Ram, 37, is ranked a career-high No. 4 in doubles and is making his second consecutive Davis Cup appearance. A two-time U.S. Olympian and 2016 Rio silver medalist in mixed doubles, Ram won his second Grand Slam and third ATP Masters 1000 doubles titles last summer at the US Open and Toronto, respectively, and owns 22 career ATP doubles titles.

This is the first time Davis Cup has been played in Northern Nevada. Davis Cup has only come to Nevada once before, a 1995 matchup between the U.S. and Sweden at Caesar’s Palace in Las Vegas that the U.S. won en route to winning the title that year. The United States owns an all-time record of 114-19 when playing at home and last won the title in 2007.

The U.S. and Colombia have split their four Davis Cup meetings, with the Colombians winning the latest matchup in the group stages of the 2021 Finals last fall in Turin, Italy.

Deloitte is the official sponsor of the U.S. Davis Cup Team. Wilson is the official ball of the U.S. Davis Cup Team.

For more information, including access to player and historical records, visit www.usta.com/daviscup or www.daviscup.com.

Djokovic, Medvedev Highlight Davis Cup Nominations

October 25, 2021 by Randy Walker Leave a Comment

The ITF and Kosmos Tennis have today announced the players nominated to represent their nations at the Davis Cup by Rakuten Finals, taking place from 25 November to 5 December 2021. The 18 teams involved will battle to be crowned Davis Cup champions. The cities of Madrid (Spain), Innsbruck (Austria) and Turin (Italy) will each host two of the six groups, with Innsbruck and Turin hosting one quarter-final, and Madrid hosting the remaining two quarter-finals, both semi-finals and the final. The six group winners, plus the two group runners-up with the best records based on matches, sets and games won will qualify for the quarter-finals.

Group A – Madrid, Spain Spain Pablo Carreno Busta Roberto Bautista Agut Carlos Alcaraz Feliciano Lopez Marcel Granollers Captain: Sergi Bruguera RTF Daniil Medvedev Andrey Rublev Aslan Karatsev Karen Khachanov Evgeny Donskoy Captain: Shamil Tarpischev Ecuador Emilio Gomez Roberto Quiroz Diego Hidalgo Gonzalo Escobar Cayetano March Captain: Raul Viver

Group B – Madrid, Spain Canada Felix Auger-Aliassime Denis Shapovalov Vasek Pospisil Brayden Schnur Peter Polansky Captain: Frank Dancevic Kazakhstan Alexander Bublik Mikhail Kukushkin Dmitry Popko Aleksandr Nedovyesov Andrey Golubev Captain: Yuriy Schukin Sweden Mikael Ymer Elias Ymer Jonathan Mridha Andre Goransson Captain: Robin Soderling

Group C – Innsbruck, Austria France Ugo Humbert Arthur Rinderknech Richard Gasquet Pierre-Hugues Herbert Nicolas Mahut Captain: Sebastien Grosjean Great Britain Cameron Norrie Daniel Evans Joe Salisbury Neal Skupski Captain: Leon Smith Czech Republic Jiri Vesely Tomas Machac Zdenek Kolar Jiri Lehecka Lukas Rosol Captain: Jaroslav Navratil

Group D – Turin, Italy Croatia Marin Cilic Borna Coric Borna Gojo Nikola Mektic Mate Pavic Captain: Vedran Martic Australia Alex de Minaur John Millman Jordan Thompson Alexei Popyrin John Peers Captain: Lleyton Hewitt Hungary Marton Fucsovics Attila Balazs Zsombor Marozsan Mate Valkusz Captain: Gabor Koves

Group E – Turin, Italy USA John Isner Reilly Opelka Taylor Fritz Jack Sock Rajeev Ram Captain: Mardy Fish Italy Matteo Berrettini Jannik Sinner Lorenzo Sonego Fabio Fognini Lorenzo Musetti Captain: Filippo Volandri Colombia Daniel Galan Nicolas Mejia Juan Sebastian Cabal Robert Farah Captain: Alejandro Falla

Group F – Innsbruck, Austria Serbia Novak Djokovic Filip Krajinovic Dusan Lajovic Laslo Djere Miomir Kecmanovic Captain: Viktor Troicki Germany Jan Lennard Struff Dominik Koepfer Peter Gojowczyk Kevin Krawietz Tim Puetz Captain: Michael Kohlmann Austria Dennis Novak Jurij Rodionov Gerald Melzer Oliver Marach Philipp Oswald Captain: Stefan Koubek

Forest Hills Seeking More Davis Cup, Pro Events After Successful South Africa – Venezuela Tie

September 23, 2021 by Randy Walker Leave a Comment

Davis Cup was played last weekend at the historic Forest Hills Stadium at the West Side Tennis Club for the first time since 1959.

The club hopes it won’t be another 62 years before it happens again.

South Africa defeated Venezuela 4-0 in the Davis Cup by Rakuten Group II Playoff Series, highlighted by victories in singles and doubles by rising ATP star Lloyd Harris, fresh off reaching the quarterfinals of the U.S. Open the previous week just three miles down the road also in Queens, New York. With the execution of this event under its belt, the long-time former home of the U.S. Open and U.S. Championships is in the market to host more Davis Cup matches or other big tennis events in the near future.

“We would love to host more Davis Cup matches or other big pro events at Forest Hills Stadium,” said Jason Weir-Smith. “The West Side Tennis Club has proven to be a suitable and enjoyable site for players and fans with an unparalleled tennis history in the United States. With New York, and specifically the borough of Queens, being one of the most ethnically diverse communities in the world, Forest Hills would be particularly attractive for national team events or tournaments with popular international tennis stars.”

The South Africa vs. Venezuela Davis Cup series was pulled together with just over one month of lead time. While Tennis South Africa, the host nation for the series, chose not to pay associated production and permitting fees to allow for the event to be ticketed for the general public, the club received almost a thousand email inquiries for tickets for the event. The event was attended by 200 enthusiastic invitation-only guests.

“People are nostalgic for tennis at Forest Hills and those who perhaps are too young to see pro tennis here have certainly seen videos and pictures that display the majesty, beauty and history of the club,” said Weir-Smith.

Following his opening singles victory over Venezuela, Harris, the South African No. 1 player, said competing on the Forest Hills Stadium court was “very special.”

“This is an incredible venue, so much history,” Harris said. “I learned so much about this venue and its history over the last few days. I’m obviously very, very honored to be playing and in a special place.”

“It’s a great honor for me to represent my country, especially at a place like this,” said South African No. 2 Philip Henning. “We love our sport, and this place is one of the places with the most history for tennis. I think a lot of big names played on this court.”

Said Venezuelan No. 1 player Ricardo Rodriguez following his singles loss to Henning, “As a player you always dream to be in the historic venues and the important sites and the most famous stadiums and arenas all over the world, and this is one of them. So, even though I lost, I still feel proud. I still feel lucky to be here.”

The West Side Tennis Club features 40 tennis courts on five surfaces, grass, red clay, Har-Tru courts, DecoTurf hard courts and synthetic grass. The 13,000-seat horseshoe-shaped Forest Hills Stadium was christened on August 11, 1923 with the Wightman Cup matches and hosted the finals of the U.S. Championships and U.S. Open from 1923 to 1977. The stadium last hosted Davis Cup in 1959 when Rod Laver, Roy Emerson and Neale Fraser led Australia to the Davis Cup title with a 3-2 victory over the United States team led by Alex Olmedo, Butch Buchholz and Barry MacKay.

South African Davis Cup Team at Forest Hlls — South African Davis Cup Team at Forest Hills

Davis Cup At Forest Hills Now Closed To General Public

September 6, 2021 by tennisbloggers Leave a Comment

The Return of Davis Cup to Forest Hills for the first time since 1959 will be a private affair.

The South Africa vs. Venezuela Davis Cup series, slated to be played at the historic West Side Tennis Club at Forest Hills September 18-19, will now not be open to the general public.

Tennis South Africa, the designated home nation for this Group II tie by the International Tennis Federation, has chosen to not pay production costs to stage a tie open to the public and thus the matches will only be open to no more than 200 people in the stadium by invitation only. Fees for permits and security and other logistics need to be paid in order for the matches to be open to the public. The West Side Tennis Club, which was proactively contacted by Tennis South Africa to ask if it could host the tie, has already invested $20,000 to have its Stadium Court resurfaced for the Davis Cup matches.

“We might be able to reverse this at the last minute if someone steps up financially,” said Jason Weir-Smith, tennis director at the West Side Tennis Club.

South Africa is expected to be led by Lloyd Harris, who has been one of the break-out stories of the 2021 U.S. Open with upsets of Olympic silver medalist Karen Khachanov and Wimbledon semifinalist and No. 7 seed Denis Shapovalov.

The South Africa vs. Venezuela best-of-five match series will be played the weekend after the conclusion of the U.S. Open on a hard court in the 98-year-old 13,000-seat historic horseshoe shaped stadium, which hosted the finals of the U.S. Championships and U.S. Open from 1923 to 1977. The stadium last hosted Davis Cup in 1959 when Rod Laver, Roy Emerson and Neale Fraser led Australia to the Davis Cup title with a 3-2 victory over the United States team led by Alex Olmedo, Butch Buchholz and Barry MacKay. The tie will mark the first time that Davis Cup will be played in the New York City area since the 1981 USA vs. Czechoslovakia Davis Cup quarterfinal at the USTA National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows featuring John McEnroe, Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl.

Davis Cup by Rakuten is the largest annual international team competition in world sport. One of the cornerstones of the tennis calendar, Davis Cup provides players with the chance to represent their country in an otherwise individual sport. Founded by Hall of Famer Dwight Davis in 1900, Davis Cup began as a challenge match between USA and British Isles, with that first event being held at the Longwood Cricket Club in Boston, Mass. Today, more than 120 nations compete in the annual event.

Miss Going To U.S. Open Qualies? Get Your Tennis Fix At Davis Cup at Forest Hills Sept. 18-19!

August 24, 2021 by Randy Walker Leave a Comment

The popular U.S. Open qualifying tournament may be closed to the public this year but New York tennis fans will have another opportunity to see big time tennis this year with Davis Cup being played the weekend after the conclusion of the U.S. Open at the historic West Side Tennis Club at Forest Hills!

Tickets for the South Africa vs. Venezuela Davis Cup by Rakuten tie September 18-19 at the West Side Tennis Club at Forest Hills are now for sale at www.ForestHillsStadium.com Daily tickets start at $25 with special VIP group hospitality packages also for sale. The matches mark the first time Davis Cup will be played at the iconic and historic former site of the U.S. Open since 1959.

The first day of play will feature two best-of-three-set singles matches starting at 11 am and the second day, also starting at 11 am, featuring the reverse two best-of-three-set singles matches and a best-of-three-set doubles match. The winner will remain in the Davis Cup Group II for the 2022 Davis Cup campaign, two levels below the Davis Cup World Group that determines the Davis Cup champion in the Davis Cup World Finals in Madrid.

The current top South African players are Kevin Anderson, the former U.S. Open and Wimbledon finalist, who achieved a career-high ranking of No. 5, top-50 player Lloyd Harris, who beat Rafael Nadal earlier this summer in Washington, D.C., and former Australian Open and Wimbledon doubles finalist Raven Klaasen. Venezuela is led by No. 585-ranked Ricardo Rodriguez, the all-time leading Davis Cup player for his country.

The best-of-five match series will be played the weekend after the conclusion of the U.S. Open on a hard court in the 98-year-old 13,000-seat historic horseshoe shaped stadium, which hosted the finals of the U.S. Championships and U.S. Open from 1923 to 1977. The stadium last hosted Davis Cup in 1959 when Rod Laver, Roy Emerson and Neale Fraser led Australia to the Davis Cup title with a 3-2 victory over the United States team led by Alex Olmedo, Butch Buchholz and Barry MacKay. This South Africa vs. Venezuela tie will mark the first time that Davis Cup will be played in the New York City area since the 1981 USA vs. Czechoslovakia Davis Cup quarterfinal at the USTA National Tennis Center in Flushing Meadows featuring John McEnroe, Jimmy Connors and Ivan Lendl.

Sponsorship opportunities are available by emailing Weir-Smith at Jason@thewestsidetennisclub.com.

Fans coming from out of town to attend this tie are encouraged to stay at the InterContinental New York Times Square, the official hotel for the South Africa vs. Venezuela tie. Located in the heart of Manhattan, InterContinental New York Times Square makes for an unforgettable retreat within New York City at the crossroads of the theater district, business and entertainment areas. Rooms can be booked here: https://www.ihg.com/intercontinental/hotels/us/en/new-york/nychc/hoteldetail?cm_mmc=GoogleMaps-_-IC-_-US-_-NYCHC and fans can take advantage of a limited-edition menu of dishes and juices inspired by both Davis Cup teams.