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Sports correspondent & historian with |
The New Zealand Davis Cup tie in Invercargill last weekend brought back a blast from the past, when what is now recognised as the “World Cup of Tennis" played a leg of the prestigious tennis showcase in the Western Bay of Plenty.
The Davis Cup is the premier international team event in men's tennis. It is now the world's largest annual international team competition in sport, with 155 nations entering in 2023.
In 1900, the Davis Cup began as a competition between the USA and Great Britain. The first tournament was held at the Longwood Cricket Club in Boston, with the Americans taking out the first competition honours.
The Davis Cup website tells us that the idea was conceived a year earlier by four members of the Harvard University tennis team who wished to set up a match between the USA and Great Britain.
Once the two national tennis associations had agreed, one of the four American players, Dwight Davis, designed a tournament format and ordered a trophy, paying for it with his own money.
The tournament was originally known as the International Lawn Tennis Challenge, but soon became known as the Davis Cup.
During February 2012, Davis Cup tennis came to Tauranga City, when the host nation squared off with Uzbekistan at the Baypark Indoor Arena.
New Zealand lost the opening two singles and the doubles to concede the Davis Cup, tie on the specially laid surface at Baypark. The home side achieved some respectability in winning the two 'dead' reverse singles on the last day.
Davis Cup World Group 2 clash September 15 & 16, 2023
The magnificent ILT Stadium Southland in Invercargill was the venue of the Davis Cup World Group 2 clash between New Zealand and Thailand, played on September 15 & 16, 2023.
Stadium Southland is a multi-sport venue, with the Davis Cup contested in the main stadium after a temporary tennis court surface was laid over the existing wooden floor.
New Zealand opened their quest for a Davis Cup World Group 1 playoffs berth with Kiwi Davis Cup veteran Rubin Statham, first up on the Invercargill court.
The thirty-eight year old, who had played in the Baypark tie in 2012, put the hosts one nil in front after winning the opening singles 6-2, 7-6.
Ajeet Rai made it two from two for New Zealand on Friday evening when he beat the Thailand number two 6-1, 6-3 in the second singles match.
Saturday saw another Kiwi Davis Cup veteran in Artem Sitak, who had also played in the 2012 tie, take to the court with Finn Reynolds. It was again one-way traffic with New Zealand winning the tie with a 6-4, 6-2 victory.
Tennis NZ reported Team Captain Kelly Evernden praising the veterans of the New Zealand team for showing their teammates the way to victory.
Rubin Statham has played more Davis Cup ties than any other player in New Zealand and on Friday he broke another record, winning his 31st Davis Cup match. Artem Sitak has played in 21 Davis Cup ties since 2011.
The Kiwi tennis players didn’t have to look far for inspiration courtside in Invercargill. The non-playing team captain, who sat courtside, rose in to 31 in the world professional rankings in 1988 and represented New Zealand at the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, the same year.
Known for his tenacity in a tennis dogfight, Kelly Evernden inspired his troops to return New Zealand to the big dance of the Davis Cup World Group 1 competition, in 2024.
