BySimon Griver, Simon Griver
Israel will play Argentina in the Davis Cup World Group playoff on September 12-14 at the Sunrise Club in Delray Beach, Florida.
The Israel Tennis Federation insisted that the match cannot be played at home as scheduled due to the Gaza conflict.
Israel chose the Sunrise tennis club because it has hard-court surfaces and weather conditions similar to its home base in Ramat Hasharon and a large Jewish community in Southern Florida who will come to cheer on the team.
Israel’s top players will now remain in America after the US Open, which begins on Monday.
Dudi Sela, world-ranked 84, qualifies for the main draw while Jonathan Erlich will likely team up with India’s Rajeev Ram in the US Open before being joined by his veteran Israeli partner of the same name, Andy Ram in the Davis Cup.
Also playing in the US Open will be Julia Glushko (101) and Shahar Peer (155). Both lost in the first
qualifying round in New Haven and though on poor form they have slipped in the rankings in the past few weeks, it came too late for them to lose their places in the US Open main draw.