Hunt in frame as top roles open up

TENNIS New Zealand have advertised for captains of the Davis Cup and Fed Cup teams, but hope Alistair Hunt re-applies for the former.

Hunt has been captain of the men’s Davis Cup team since 2013 and brought about a unity that wasn’t always there under previous captains.

The team have won promotion and been able to stay in Asia/ Oceania Group One over that period, but Tennis NZ high performance director Simon Rea says they want to put the job up for grabs.

‘‘It’s not an indictment or judgment on Alistair Hunt,’’ Rea said.

‘‘In fact, on the contrary, I felt he led really strongly in April (defeating South Korea 3-2), he provided great value to the playing group and did a great job in uniting them in their purpose.

‘‘This is purely about openness and transparency from our perspective.

‘‘We think we’ve identified a few things across the organisation that we can do better and we want to package that captaincy piece up in a slightly different way moving forward.

‘‘To do that we need to open the door, start from ground zero and build from there.

‘‘This is no reflection on Al whatsoever and I strongly hope he applies for the role.’’

New Zealand have a Davis Cup tie away to China in February, while the women’s Fed Cup team will play at a yet-to-be announced venue during the middle of 2018.

Rea filled in as Fed Cup captain this year, when New Zealand returned to the competition, but the previous appointed captain was Pavlina Nola in 2014.

The new captains could be appointed for up to 10 weeks a year, which is far longer than any involvement in just the ties.

Tennis NZ are looking for two people with extensive experience of coaching tennis at an elite international level and a track record of proven success.

The captain must be either born in New Zealand or lived here for an extended period.

But there don’t appear to be too many options who fit Tennis NZ’s requirements and the most suitable person for either role seems to be Rea, who previously worked for Tennis Australia and brought through rising star Nick Kyrgios.

However, Rea says he doesn’t want those jobs.

‘‘I would definitely like to have a role with the Davis Cup and Fed Cup groups, but not as a captain right now,’’ he said.

‘‘I’m a work in progress and continually learning myself. I’d like to think I can be a resource and help to the captains, but I don’t think it has to be me.’’