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Pretoria - Tennis South Africa (TSA) announced on Tuesday that the Irene Country Club will again play host to the country's Davis Cup team.
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The tie against Israel will be played over two days, in a newly trialled format, from February 2-3, 2018 - in the first round of the Euro/Africa Zone Group 1.
This is the second time South Africa will play Israel in Davis Cup competition. The first and only tie played between the two nations was in 2001, where Israel narrowly beat South Africa 3-2 at home. The winner of the tie will play against group top seeds, Czech Republic, in April - with the loser going into a relegation playoff position in September.
Irene Country Club, situated in the leafy suburb of Irene, Centurion has become a favourite Davis Cup venue over the past four years. Of the six ties the venue has hosted, the South Africans have won 5.
“We look forward to playing at the Irene Country Club. It is an incredible setting that has been successful and good to us recently,” said captain of the SA Davis Cup team, Marcos Ondruska.
“We also expect some significantly tougher opposition from Israel than the teams we have played here in the past which should make for some fantastic tennis. With top tennis players like Dudi Sela in South Africa, I think the South African tennis community is in for a treat. We look forward to a huge battle and are working hard to be on the winners podium at the end of it,” continued Ondruska.
Meanwhile, TSA also announced that tickets for the tie are now on sale. Tickets are R150 per person, per session.
The first session is on Friday, February 2 and play starts at 16:00 with two singles rubbers. The second session gets underway on Saturday, February 3 at 11:00 - with the doubles rubber followed by the two reverse singles.
Irene Country Club (Photo credit: Reg Caldecott)
