Stosur excited for first tie as Australia’s Billie Jean King Cup captain | 2 April, 2024 | All News | News and Features | News and Events

Sam Stosur is looking forward to sitting in the captain’s chair for the first time at the upcoming Billie Jean King Cup tie in Brisbane.

The 40-year-old enjoyed a taste of her new role over the Australian summer, where she spent countless hours courtside supporting Aussie players.

“Watching tennis and back-to-back matches is actually quite tiring,” laughed Stosur, who is replacing Alicia Molik as the national captain.

“I’ve already watched more tennis this year than I’ve done in many years.”

But Stosur, who ended her illustrious playing career at Australian Open 2023, is relishing the opportunity to give back to the sport as a mentor.

“I always loved watching tennis when I was a player, but obviously now I’m trying to do it in a different way,” she said.

“I’m watching for different reasons. I’m trying to work out different things for different players, and how things might match up for them, rather than your own tennis. But I’ve really enjoyed it so far.

“This first tie is what it all comes down to, having the team there to get us through and hopefully into the finals later this year. This is what all those weeks in January watching matches and all the build up comes down to.”

Stosur admitted selecting the five players to take on Mexico at Pat Rafter Arena next week was “difficult”.

“Obviously I’ve never done it before,” she said. “But I’m really happy with the team we’ve selected.”

Experienced campaigners Storm Hunter and Daria Saville spearhead the Aussie line-up alongside top-10 doubles star Ellen Perez, the in-form Arina Rodionova and rising star Taylah Preston.