Billie Jean King Cup USA Team: Players, opponents, when and where to watch

Modified Nov 08, 2023 04:49 GMT

Sloane Stephens, Sofia Kenin and Taylor Townsend are part of the American squad competing in the 2023 Biilie Jean King Cup.

The 2023 Billie Jean King Cup marks the end of women's tennis for the year. The event is taking place from November 7-12, in Seville, Spain. 18-time champion USA are one of the 12 teams contesting this week.

Following the qualifying round which took place in April, the 12 finalists were decided. Nine of those teams fought for the spots, which included Canada, Czechia, France, Germany, Italy, Kazakhstan, Slovenia, Spain and the USA.

Poland were given a wildcard, while Australia and Switzerland qualified on the basis of them being the previous year's finalists. The tournament is already underway, with the American squad about to kick off their campaign as well.

With that, here are all the details regarding the players competing for Team USA in this edition of the Billie Jean King Cup:

Players

Danielle Collins at the 2023 San Diego Open.

Grand Slam champions Sloane Stephens and Sofia Kenin lead the American contingent for the 2023 Billie Jean King Cup finals. 2022 Australian Open finalist Danielle Collins, Taylor Townsend and Peyton Stearns are their teammates. Kathy Rinaldi is the team captain.

Stearns was called in to replace Madison Keys. Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula, the highest-ranked Americans in the world, aren't participating. The two were on the other side of the world competing in the WTA Finals, and the scheduling conflict forced them to miss the Billie Jean King Cup.

The USA won their most recent title here back in 2017, with Stpehens being a part of the winning squad. Their previous best result was a semifinal showing in 2021, with Collins and Stephens being a part of the team that year.

Opponents

The Americans have been drawn in Group A alongside defending champions Switzerland, and the Czech Republic. The latter have become one of the most successful teams in the tournament as they have claimed six titles since 2011.

Linda Noskova, Marie Bouzkova, Marketa Vondrousova, Barbora Krejcikova and Katerina Siniakova make up the Czech team. The Swiss squad consists of Belinda Bencic, Celine Naef, Viktorija Golubic, Jil Teichmann and Simona Waltert.

The Czechs are already off to a great start as they blanked the defending champions 3-0 in the first group tie. Noskova and Bouzkova won the singles matches, while Siniakova and Krejcikova got the job done in doubles.

Schedule

The USA will contest their first group tie on Thursday, November 9, against Switzerland. The Americans have faced the Swiss team nine times over the years and have emerged victorious on each occasion. The tie will consist of two singles rubbers and a doubles match.

The Americans won't have time to rest as they will take on the Czechs the next day on Friday, November 10. The USA have a 10-4 lead in this rivalry, but the Czechs bested them in their previous encounter, which took place during last year's group stage at the Billie Jean King Cup finals.

Should the Americans make it through the group stage, they'll take on the winners of Group C in the semifinals on Saturday, November 11. Their possible opponents include either Spain, Canada or Poland. The championship round will take place on Sunday, November 12.