Captain fantastic: A closer look at the 12 captains drawing up their battle plans for Seville
03/11/2023 12:59
Twelve captains are busy plotting a path to Billie Jean King Cup glory at the women's World Cup of Tennis, which begins in Seville on 7 November. Find out more about the first six set to do battle next week...
By Kevin Palmer
The Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge finals are coming to Seville and the 12 captains handed the task of masterminding success are drawing up their battle plans.
While in-match coaching has become a regular part of the WTA Tour, this competition has the added element of the captain sitting on the court with players and having a chance to influence their mindset and strategy at each change of ends.
Each player will require a different brand of management and finding the perfect formula can help to swing a tie at a crucial moment.
Here is a look at the first six captains preparing to do battle in Seville, with a wide range of experience on display in this year's Finals. We will profile the other six captains later this week.
AUSTRALIA - Alicia Molik
An Australian Open singles quarter-finalist in 2005, Molik reached a career-high of No. 8 in the world following that run in Melbourne.
She won a bronze medal at the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens and was a prolific doubles player, winning the 2005 Australian Open with Svetlana Kuznetsova and the 2007 Wimbledon title with Italy's Mara Santangelo.
Molik won 12 singles matches in her Billie Jean King Cup career with Australia and was appointed as her nation's captain in 2013 and she will step down from the role after this year's Finals.
"It's a decision that's come with a lot of thought and a lot of planning and I just feel like it is the right time," said Molik, whose long career in the Billie Jean King Cup began as a player in 1999.
She has never won Billie Jean King Cup as a player or captain, but captained Australia to the Final in both 2019 and 2022.
CANADA - Heidi El Tabakh
After winning an impressive collection of titles on the ITF World Tennis Tour, El Tabakh made her only Grand Slam appearances at Roland Garros in 2010 and 2012.
After retiring in 2016, El Tabakh was involved with coaching different programmes at Tennis Canada and she has also captained the Canadian Junior Billie Jean King Cup team (16 years and under).
She replaced Sylvain Bruneau as Canada's Billie Jean King Cup captain in 2018 and has developed a strong team ethic during her reign.
"I have full trust in my team," said El Tabakh, whose players are coming in with momentum after strong results to start 2023. "I think that it's good to have recent results. Players have confidence, I have confidence in them as well. I think that they make a great team."
Tabakh is eyeing a place in history as the first captain to lead Canada to Billie Jean King Cup glory.
Tabakh is eyeing a place in history as the first captain to lead Canada to Billie Jean King Cup glory.
CZECHIA - Petr Pala
A doubles specialist in his playing career, Pala played in the 2001 Roland Garros final alongside partner and compatriot Pavel Vizner, with the duo also reaching the Wimbledon last eight in the same year.
Appointed Czechia's Billie Jean King Cup captain in 2007, Pala holds the record for the most titles won as a captain in this competition, with the most recent of his six wins coming in 2018.
Now he is eyeing up fresh success in Seville, in a challenging Group A.
"We have a tough group this year and I know the USA team will want to beat us," says Pala. "It's the same for us with Switzerland, who beat us on the last two occasions. If you want to do well in the competition, you have to beat tough teams."
FRANCE - Julien Benneteau
A Davis Cup winner with France in 2017, this talented performer was also a Grand Slam winner as he lifted the 2014 Roland Garros title with partner Edouard Roger-Vasselin.
He had wins against Roger Federer, Novak Djokovic and Rafael Nadal in his lengthy career and is now excelling in his role as France's Billie Jean King Cup captain after his appointment in 2018.
Benneteau guided France to victory in his first year as captain, ending a 16-year wait for a victory in the competition after they beat Australia in Perth in the 2019 final, and now he is relishing the challenge in Seville.
"It’s an open group. I think everybody can qualify. We hope that it will be us," said Benneteau.
GERMANY - Rainer Schüttler
This steady performer reached the 2003 Australian Open final, losing against an inspired Andre Agassi in Melbourne. He also reached the semi-finals at Wimbledon in 2008 and collected an Olympic Games silver medal in 2004 in doubles alongside partner Nicolas Kiefer.
After coaching leading German player Angelique Kerber, Schüttler was named as his nation's Billie Jean King Cup captain in 2019.
"We recently proved against Croatia and Brazil that we are a great team and we will show that again in Seville," says Schüttler. "Our goal is, of course, to win and we will do everything to achieve it. We have a fantastic team spirit and a team that can achieve great things."
Schüttler is hoping to lead the Germans to their first triumph in the competition since 1992 - and their third in history.
ITALY - Tathiana Garbin
Garbin was nominated to play for Italy in the Billie Jean King Cup on 24 occasions and played her final match in the competition in 2008.
She reached the fourth round at Roland Garros in 2007 and she won her only WTA Tour title on the clay in Budapest in 2000.
Garbin was appointed as Italy's Billie Jean King Cup captain in 2016 and is relishing the chance to lead her nation into the Finals of this competition for a second successive year.
"The feelings can only be positive about this trip: every time our girls come to the national team, they manage to go beyond their limits, by virtue of the love and respect they have for this jersey, for the pride they feel in wearing it," said Garbin.
Garbin is looking to lead the Italians to victory in the competition for the first time in a decade, following the last of their four triumphs in 2013.
KAZAKHSTAN - Yaroslava Shvedova
A three-time Grand Slam quarter-finalists, Shvedova reached the last eight at the French Open in 2010 and 2012 before her in at Wimbledon was halted by Venus Williams in 2016.
She had a career-high ranking of No. 25 in October 2012 and had seven wins against top ten opponents, including a victory against world No. 1 Jelena Jankovic at the 2009 US Open.
Shvedova continued to be a huge presence in Kazakhstani tennis after the end of her playing career, as she leads both the Billie Jean King Cup and the Billie Jean King Cup Juniors team.
"Tennis is still young in Kazakhstan compared to all the big countries, those which host Grand Slams and have a big history of tennis. There are still people within Kazakhstan learning and getting to know about the sport," says Shvedova, ahead of a week that could be hugely significant for tennis in her county.
POLAND - Dawid Celt
An injury ended Celt's hopes of building on a successful career in the junior ranks, but he has enjoyed a fine career in tennis after emerging as a highly respected coach.
He confirmed his potential as a coach while working with former Polish No. 1 Agnieszka Radwanska, with the couple getting married in the summer of 2017. Their first child, Jakub, was born in July 2020.
Celt took over as Poland's Billie Jean King Cup captain in 2018 and guided his nation to the Finals in Glasgow last year.
SLOVENIA - Andrej Krasevec
Slovenia's presence at the Billie Jean King Cup Finals in Seville represents a remarkable triumph for captain Krasevec, who masterminded an incredible comeback win against Romania in the Qualifiers in April.
A former professional player who played five matches for Slovenia in the Davis Cup, Krasevec has excelled in his role as Slovenia's Billie Jean King Cup captain, leading his team through a challenging Europe/Africa Pool B in April and then past China in the Play-Offs last November.
Now he is relishing the chance to take his place on the biggest stage in women's team tennis.
"I didn't have any expectations for the draw. I think all teams are really competitive," said Krasevec. "There should be some good matches. I'm looking forward to it."
SPAIN - Anabel Medina Garrigues
A successful player who won 11 singles titles and 28 doubles titles in her career, Garrigues was a two-time French Open doubles champion and won a silver medal alongside partner Virginia Ruano Pascual at the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing. She reached a career-high ranking of No. 3 in doubles in November 2008.
Garrigues was appointed as Spain's Billie Jean King Cup captain in October 2017 and will be keen to move beyond the Group stages for the first time in Seville.
"Canada and Poland are very strong countries, but Spain is the world's No. 3 country, we have won 11 of the last 14 ties and are playing at home in Seville," said Garrigues ahead of the finals.
SWITZERLAND - Heinz Guenthardt
The headlines around Swiss tennis may have been dominated by the great Roger Federer over the last couple of decades, but they have also had some great success in the women's game and head to Seville eager to defend the title they won last November.
As a player, Guenthardt was a quarter-finalist in the Wimbledon and US Open in 1985, while he also won the Roland Garros and Wimbledon doubles titles in a career that saw him with 36 matches for Switzerland in the Davis Cup.
A former coach of German great Steffi Graf, Guenthardt described his achievement of leading Switzerland to Billie Jean King Cup glory in Glasgow last year as his most cherished moment in tennis.
USA - Kathy Rinaldi
After starting her reign as USA Billie Jean King Cup captain with a victory, Rinaldi is aiming to end her story on the ultimate high in Seville.
A former top 10 singles player, Rinaldi was the youngest player to win a match at Wimbledon (14 years, 91 days) against South Africa's Sue Rollinson in 1981. It was a record that stood until 1990.
She guided USA to victory in this competition in her first year as captain and she will be hoping her last shot at glory in Seville will give her the perfect send-off before she steps down from her role at the end of this year's Finals, with Lindsay Davenport taking over as USA captain in 2024.
