Davis Cup Coming Back to Area, But Not La Jolla

Petco Park will stage a Davis Cup first round tennis match between the U.S. and Great Britain early next year, the Padres and the U.S. Tennis Association announced Tuesday.

The contest is scheduled for Jan. 31-Feb. 2. A temporary clay court stadium with an expected seating capacity of around 8,000 will be built in left field to accommodate the event.

It will be the first time the international Davis Cup tournament will be played in an open-air baseball stadium in the U.S.

San Diego last hosted a Davis Cup match in 2006, when the U.S. defeated Romania at the La Jolla Beach and Tennis Club.

"We are proud to bring Davis Cup to San Diego and tennis to Petco Park," said Padres President and CEO Mike Dee. "This ballpark was built on the promise of being a multi-use venue that would bring year-round events to San Diego. We look forward to seeing the transformation of left field into a state- of-the-art clay court tennis venue."

The Padres have been seeking more off-season events for Petco Park to increase revenues for the team and city of San Diego and programming for area residents.

According to the USTA, two singles matches will be played on the first day, with a doubles match on Day Two. The finale will have two more singles matches. The winner of the best-of-five contest will advance to the second round.

Wimbledon champion and Olympic gold medalist Andy Murray is expected to compete for Great Britain.

—City News Service