The Billie Jean King Cup is coming back to the Delray Beach Tennis Center for a fifth time, The Palm Beach Post has learned.
The so-called women’s tennis World Cup, this BJK Cup matchup will feature the United States hosting Hungary on Nov. 21-22 in a relegation match with victory ensuring USA will be part of the 2027 competition.
The roster hasn’t been announced yet, but it is believed Delray Beach resident Coco Gauff and Boca Raton’s Jessica Pegulawill be on the roster. Making it convenient for stars, Gauff, Pegula and Adventura’s Amanda Ansimova was a factor in the event landing in Palm Beach County again.
Delray Beach has historically provided a veritable home-court advantage for the USA in international team tennis competition. The U.S. Billie
Jean King Cup team is 4-0 all-time when competing at the Delray Beach Tennis Center, the last such victory coming in 2023, when Gauff and Pegula led a sweep of Austria in front of near sell-out crowds.
Meanwhile, former tennis great Lindsay Davenport, the Billie Jean King Cup captain for the U.S., hasn’t ruled out having come-backing Serena Williams – or sister Venus – on the squad.
Serena, 44, who came out of retirement to play singles at Wimbledon, was competing this week in Cincinnati in doubles with Venus. Serena’s intentions for the upcoming U.S. Open is unclear, but the 46-year-old Venus just got a singles wildcard into the event.
The Williams sisters moved recently from Palm Beach Gardens to Jupiter.
“Of course, nothing is off the table,’’ Davenport told The Post regarding the Williams sisters. “My job is to field the best team I can. It’s a really important tie to stay in the top world group. Obviously, we want the best players we can get. Getting the best player of all time in Serena would be a dream. I’m hopeful it all works out in the next few months.’’
Asked if she’s spoken to Serena, Davenport said, “I’ve talked to all of the players to inform them and get their feelings. I’m hopeful we’ll field the best team possible.’’
Lindsay Davenport will announce part of roster after US Open
Davenport said she plans to announce part of the five-person roster after the U.S. Open ends.
USA will not be competing in September in the BJK Cup eight-team finals in China as it lost its qualifying match in Belgium in April.
With Gauff, Pegula and Ansimova sitting out the Belgium qualifier, a young team of Hailey Baptiste, Iva Jovic and McCartney Kessler was defeated.
The USA has won the title 18 times – Davenport has three titles as a player - but there will be none for 2026. Hence, this November event is contested to qualify for 2027.
“It’s an interesting time of year,’’ Davenport said. “Technically, it’s the first week of the players’ offseason. The USTA and I both wanted to make it in a tennis town, a town that loves tennis, supports it and has a high following.
“We also wanted to make it truly as perfect as possible for the players. I played there in (Delray) in 2003 (vs. Belgium). We had one of the best times. It’s always been such a great host. It’s a perfect place to play in November.’’
The USA women are 4-0 at the Delray Beach Tennis Center - the last appearance in 2023, when Gauff and Pegula led a sweep of Austria. The captain then was Kathy Rinaldi.
“It was fantastic crowd support,’’ Davenport said of her 2003 appearance. “I’m hopeful the players come out to support it as well as the fans.
April’s Belgium defeat was an eye opener.
“Of course it’s disappointing,’’ Davenport said of not competing in the 2026 finals. “We’re in the event to try to win it. We were disappointed to lose and motivated to get back to that top spot in ‘27 to win it again.
“We haven’t won this event nearly as often as we should, considering the great talent pool we have. I’m looking forward to the next few years.’’
Coco Gauff sitting out US Open mixed doubles tournament
It would seem unimaginable for Gauff not to play. But she surprisingly will not compete in the U.S. Open’s prestigious mixed doubles tournament that for the second straight year is being spotlighted days before the singles main draw.
“My fingers are crossed (on Coco),’’ said Davenport, who has worked for Tennis Channel since 2008 when she retired. “I can’t guarantee anything but I’m hopeful that we’ll have support, especially from players locally.’’
Formerly the Fed Cup, the competition is a best-of-five matches across two days. There are four total singles matches and one doubles battle - on the second day. A Williams sisters’ doubles pairing could be a way to pump up the event’s profile.
Two-day ticket packages will go on sale to the general public on August 21 via Ticketmaster.com.
Davenport has been captain since 2024. “It’s a great honor,’’ Davenport said. “Representing my country has always been something super important to me. Playing at the Olympics and Billie Jean Cup, they were my most fun, treasured times, getting to know some of the other players better and build meaningful relationships.
“I love these weeks. Everyone has to learn together. So often you just worry about yourself. It’s my job as captain to make sure the players are enjoying themselves and getting something out of it.’’
This article originally appeared on Palm Beach Post: BREAKING | Billie Jean King Cup returning to Delray Beach for 5th time
