Courier no longer calling shots for Cup
JIM Courier says he decided a year ago to step aside as captain of the US Davis Cup team after the 2018 competition ended.
The US Tennis Association announced yesterday Courier was “stepping down,” less than two weeks after the Americans lost to host Croatia 3-2 in the Davis Cup semi-finals.
The USTA’s news release did not say why he was leaving after eight years on the job.
In an email to The Associated Press, he said the choice to walk away was his and that he determined “at the end of 2017 that 2018 would be my final year as captain”.
He said he had revealed his impending departure to players, staff and USTA president Katrina Adams at the team’s closing dinner in Croatia on September 16, after the matches there concluded.
“The reason I made 2018 my final year was my view that eight years was the right amount of time for me to lead the team,” Courier said.
Whoever the USTA brings aboard to replace him will be its first captain to operate in the new Davis Cup set up that was approved by the International Tennis Federation last month and takes effect next year, including a seasonending, 18-team tournament at a neutral site.
“The format change did not factor into my thinking, as it was far from a certainty when I made the decision,” Courier wrote.