One of Australia’s most prominent figures in women’s team tennis will return to the competition but as the captain.
Sam Stosur has been appointed as the head of her country’s Billie Jean King (BJK) Cup team following the departure of Alicia Molik. The 39-year-old was confirmed as the new captain during this year’s Newcombe Medal ceremony. Stosur played in the event, which was previously known as the Fed Cup, for 19 years between 2003-2022. She retired from professional tennis earlier this year.
“You can’t really explain until you’re in that situation to know what it’s going to feel like going on a court to play in Billie Jean King Cup, compared to a normal tournament – even the first time playing the Australian Open. It really, truly is a different experience,” Stosur told tennis.com.au.
“So I know I’ve got all these different areas of my own playing career that I can pull from. Having that understanding, when someone’s really nervous or something, to know, ‘oh yeah I totally get it’’. It’s not going to be a surprise if that happens. You can then try and navigate that together and come out on top, or in a good way.”
According to the official BJK website, Stosur won 29 singles matches during her career which is more than any other player from her country in the history of the competition. On top of that, she also won 10 doubles matches and played in a total of 34 ties.
Outside of team competition, Stosur is a former No.4 singles player who won the 2011 US Open title. She also won a further four major titles in the women’s doubles and peaked at No.1.
“Alicia’s done an amazing job in this role, with her leadership with the players. Everyone always wants to be part of the team; there’s a great team culture. The two finals that we made … everyone’s very, very proud of that and hopefully one day we can go that one step further.” She said of her new role.
Next year will be the 50th anniversary of the last time Australia won the Billie Jean Cup. In 2023 they played in the finals but finished at the bottom of their group.
