There are 2 new players in the New Zealand Davis Cup tennis team to play their Asia-Oceania group 2 ties against Pakistan in Taranaki next month.
USA based players Michael Venus and Austen Childs are the two new faces for the team after both have had major success in recent times in the US College system and ITF Futures.
They join Rubin Statham and Marcus Daniell as the two other players.
Childs, (21) became the first New Zealander to ever make the final of the NCAA earlier this month beating a number of seeded players along the way. He is currently ranked at 19 in the NCAA rankings while studying at the University of Louisville.
Childs, who was born in Mt Maunganui was a finalist at the 2009 NZ Pascoes the Jewellers Residentials in December where he was beaten by Daniell, and was a former quarterfinalist at the Australian Open juniors.
22-year-old Venus was born in New Zealand but has spent most of his teenage years living in the United States, graduated from the Louisiana State University.
He has a current ATP ranking of 530 in singles and 566 in doubles which is expected to rise next week after he won both the singles and doubles (with Daniell) at a Futures tournament in California last week.
He has two Futures singles titles to his credit and four doubles titles.
The senior player in the team will be 23-year-old Statham, who has been as high at 294 in the world, but has a current rank of 413.
Statham has been in the New Zealand team for the past six years and has an impressive 13 wins from 16 matches in Davis Cup
Kiwi No1 Dan King-Turner was not available for selection for the tie as he has playing commitments in Europe.
