New Zealand Players Announced For Davis Cup Tie Against Luxembourg

The New Zealand team has been named for September’s historic Davis Cup tie against Luxembourg in Palmerston North.

The team for the tie is KP Pannu, Ajeet Rai, Rubin Statham, Finn Reynolds, and Jack Loutit, who has been selected for the first time.

Artem Sitak has been named the new Davis Cup captain for New Zealand. The 38-year-old Sitak takes over from Kelly Evernden and will lead the team for the World Group II tie which takes place September 14-15.

This tie will be a big occasion for the 20-year-old Loutit, who is about to enter his second year at the University of Kentucky playing collegiate tennis.

Sitak said he has been following Loutit’s progression and is impressed with what he’s seen.

“He was with the team when we played Bulgaria in Christchurch and I saw him play there and thought he was good,” Sitak said.

“Then I saw him in Auckland this year at the ASB Classic in qualifying and we hit a few times before that. His improvement was drastic, his shots had got really big and he’d got stronger. I know right now he’s at college and he’s with a good coach, so that will help him a lot.”

Sitak retired as a player after this year’s ASB Classic and was a stalwart of the New Zealand team throughout his career, making his debut against Uzbekistan in 2011 and playing for the final time against Thailand last September.

The Davis Cup has always been special for Sitak and he says it’s an honour for him to become captain so soon after moving into coaching.

“Even when I was playing, I felt like I really wanted to become the Davis Cup captain. So when I decided to retire from tennis, it was in my plans,” Sitak said.

“I hoped that one day I would become Davis Cup captain and I hoped I’d be good enough for that. The fact that I could get it six months after I retired is amazing.

“I feel so proud, honoured and I feel a huge responsibility towards tennis in New Zealand and the Davis Cup squad.

Sitak captained the New Zealand Junior Davis Cup team in Kazakhstan in May, with the team narrowly missing out on a place in the quarterfinals on count back and he said that experience prepared him for his new role.

“That helped a lot, I had to deal with a lot of things, we played a lot of matches, had a long preparation, but it was good preparation. I connected with the guys, and we did really well.” he said.

Tennis NZ CEO Julie Paterson thanked Evernden for the contribution he made as Davis Cup captain.

“We welcome Artem as our new Davis Cup captain. His dedication to the New Zealand Davis Cup team as a player over many years has been exceptional and we're excited to see what fresh perspectives he can bring in the captain’s role as a recently retired Pro. ” Paterson said.

“I also want to thank Kelly for a great contribution as captain. As one of New Zealand's greatest ever on the court, he brought a lot of mana to the role and the team achieved some great results under his leadership, with a win vs Uruguay against the odds in 2022 a particular highlight.

“We're sure this won't be the end of his contribution to tennis in New Zealand."

This will be the first Davis Cup tie held in Palmerston North, and interest from tennis fans in the region has been strong.

“Ticket sales have been phenomenal so far and we're expecting one of the biggest crowds for an NZ Davis Cup tie in many years,” Tennis NZ Commercial & Marketing Manager Gareth Archer said.

“We encourage locals to get in now to secure their tickets before they sell out.”

Tickets are available from www.tennis.kiwi/buy and start at just $10 for children, $22 for adults.

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