Eyal Ran

Ran spent ten years on the professional tennis circuit before retiring in 2001 and played 15 matches for Israel in the Davis Cup.[4] His opponents during his playing career included former top-ten players Stefan Edberg, Patrick Rafter, David Nalbandian, Tim Henman, Albert Costa and Jonas Bjorkman.[4] In 2001, he partnered with Noam Behr in doubles at Wimbledon and the French Open; the pair lost in the first round at both tournaments.[1]

In 2005, Ran succeeded Oded Jacob as Israel’s Davis Cup captain.[2] The following year, Israel defeated Great Britain away, recording its first Davis Cup victory over Britain and securing another season in the top European-African group.[5] After Noam Okun’s decisive win, Ran said the team had set out to take three points and that the whole team felt it was playing in Okun’s match.[5] He described his approach to the pressure of the tie as “baby steps”: “one point at a time, one game at a time.”[4]

The 2006 tie also gave Ran an opportunity to introduce an inexperienced player to the national-team environment.[4] Injuries and Harel Levy’s decision not to play on grass opened a squad place for 21-year-old Dekel Valtzer, who had never played Davis Cup or at an ATP Tour event.[4] Ran selected Valtzer, who spent two weeks training with the professionals and learning about grass-court play and on-court routines.[4] Ran said he observed a change in Valtzer, including in his behavior between points.[4]

That year, Ran proposed a “junior Davis Cup” framework connecting Israel’s leading 17- and 18-year-old players with the senior national team.[4] He envisaged four or five young players joining the established squad for training when it assembled, with possibly two additional sessions each year.[4] The aim was to let younger players train alongside senior professionals and experience the national-team environment.[4]

In April 2007, Israel was drawn to host Chile in a September 21–23 playoff for promotion to the World Group.[6] Ran regarded Chile as a strong and attractive opponent, acknowledged that it was favored, and expressed confidence that Israel could win at home.[6]

Israel reached its first Davis Cup semifinal in 2009 under Ran’s captaincy, securing the quarterfinal against Russia with a 3–0 lead.[3] Harel Levy, Dudi Sela, Andy Ram and Jonathan Erlich delivered the result against a Russian team regarded as the clear pre-match favorite, before nearly 10,000 spectators at Yad Eliyahu in Tel Aviv.[3] The semifinal campaign ended in a 4–1 defeat to Spain in Murcia.[7] After the doubles defeat gave Spain an unassailable 3–0 lead, Ran said, “I hope it is the start of something. We are looking forward to next year.”[7] He also expressed the team’s pride and its hope of retaining that feeling in the years ahead.[7]

Ahead of Israel’s 2010 World Group survival tie against Austria at Nokia Arena in Tel Aviv, Ran emphasized the benefit of several days of practice at the venue and said the players were in good form.[8] The winner would remain among the World Group’s 16 teams, while the loser would leave the group.[8] Ran believed home support could help Israel overcome any opponent, including an Austrian side featuring Jürgen Melzer, then ranked 13th in the world.[8]

By March 2011, Ran was living in Arizona and working primarily in real-estate management rather than tennis.[9] His Davis Cup captaincy required roughly three to four weeks of work annually and offered little compensation.[9]

In 2014, Ran remained captain as Israel prepared for a playoff against Argentina, seeking a return to the World Group after defeating Slovenia.[10] The Israeli players included Dudi Sela, Amir Weintraub, Andy Ram and Jonathan Erlich.[10] Ran emphasized the boost that playing at home could give both players and supporters; the teams’ two previous Davis Cup meetings had both been held in Buenos Aires.[10]

Ran announced his immediate departure in September 2017 after Israel lost 5–0 to Ukraine.[2] Israel was then due to face Romania in a survival tie to avoid relegation to the third tier, while financial difficulties in hosting consecutive ties led the association to plan to ask Romania to host instead.[11] Ran said he had wanted to captain Israel against Romania because his father had been barred from playing table tennis there over his wish to leave the then-Communist country for Israel.[2] Nevertheless, he concluded that it was time to “pass the reins,” ending his 12-year tenure.[2]

The central achievement of Ran’s captaincy was Israel’s first Davis Cup semifinal appearance in 2009, following the quarterfinal breakthrough against Russia.[2][3] His tenure also included Israel’s first Davis Cup victory over Great Britain in 2006.[5] Alongside these team results, his proposed junior framework and selection of Dekel Valtzer reflected an emphasis on giving younger Israeli players direct experience of senior international tennis.[4]