After the German tennis players were relegated from the world group of the Billie Jean King Cup, Rainer Schüttler resigned as team boss.
The 49-year-old wants to “create space for new impulses and a personnel reorientation,” as the German Tennis Federation (DTB) announced.
Schüttler took over as team captain in 2020. Under his leadership, the team reached the finals of the national competition three times in the past five years, but suffered a bitter relegation to the second division on Sunday.
“I carried out this task with great passion and am proud of the development of the players and the entire team. After the disappointing outcome of the playoffs, now is the right time to take responsibility and make room for new accents,” said Schüttler, according to the statement.
After analysis comes the search for a successor
The DTB wants to “comprehensively analyze” the sporting situation in the coming weeks and then look for a suitable successor for the position of team captain. “With his great commitment, his professional expertise and his human nature, he has repeatedly led the team to top performances over the past five years,” said DTB board member Veronika Rücker and thanked Schüttler for his work.
Quick decision
The German tennis players fell into the second division in the playoffs of the Billie Jean King Cup after defeats against Turkey on Friday and against Belgium on Sunday after twelve years in the international elite. This started in 2014 when the event was still called Fed Cup. Back then, the selection stormed to the final with stars like Angelique Kerber and Andrea Petkovic. Now three top 50 players were missing in Tatjana Maria, Laura Siegemund and Eva Lys.
After the exit, Schüttler initially announced that he wanted to speak to the players in December. Association president Dietloff von Arnim told the dpa when asked about a possible separation from Schüttler because of relegation: “We are not a football club.” Now ex-professional Schüttler made a quick decision.