1923 International Lawn Tennis Challenge

Details
Duration	15 May – 3 September 1923
Edition	18th
Teams	17
Champion
Winning Nation	United States
← 1922 1924 →

The 1923 International Lawn Tennis Challenge was the 18th edition of what is now known as the Davis Cup. For the first time, the competition was split into two zones: the America Zone and the Europe Zone. This change was necessitated by having more than 16 teams compete for the cup (thus not fitting into one easily workable draw). The past several years had also seen a rise in the number of defaults, as teams from around the globe tried to work out the logistics of playing such an international tournament. Regional zones would help alleviate these problems.

The Europe Zone consisted of 13 teams, while the America Zone was made up of 4 teams. Hawaii competed for the first and only time. The winners of the Zones met in an Inter-Zonal play-off, with the winner challenging defending champions the United States for the championship.

Australia defeated France in the Inter-Zonal play-off, but again lost to the United States in the Challenge Round. The final was played at the West Side Tennis Club in New York City on 31 August – 3 September. ^{[1] [2]}

America Zone

Draw

	Semifinals 26–28 July					Final 9–12 August
	Orange, NJ, United States (grass)
	Australia		4
						Chicago, IL, United States (grass)
	Hawaii		1
						Australia		4
	Montreal, Canada (grass)
						Japan		1
	Canada		0
	Japan		5

Final

Australia vs. Japan

Australia 4	South Side Tennis Club, Chicago, IL, United States [3] 9–12 August 1923 Grass		Japan 1
1 2 3 4 5 1 James Anderson Zenzo Shimizu 6 0 6 3 6 3       2 John Hawkes Masanosuke Fukuda 6 3 6 4 6 3       3 James Anderson /  John Hawkes Seiichiro Kashio /  Zenzo Shimizu 6 1 6 2 6 2       4 John Hawkes Zenzo Shimizu 4 6 6 3 6 2 1 6 4 6   5 James Anderson Masanosuke Fukuda 6 1 3 6 6 2 6 1

Europe Zone

Draw

First Round 15 May–4 June

Quarterfinals 1–23 June

Semifinals 9–15 July

Final 28 July–1 August

Netherlands

Noordwijk, Netherlands (clay)

bye

Netherlands

5

Italy

0

Italy

Eastbourne, England (grass)

bye

Netherlands

0

Brussels, Belgium (clay)

Spain

5

Great Britain

3

Manchester, England (grass)

Belgium

2

Great Britain

2

Spain

3

Spain

w/o

Deauville, France (clay)

Romania

Spain

2

Bordeaux, France (clay)

France

3

France

4

Dublin, Ireland (grass)

Denmark

1

France

4

Dublin, Ireland (grass)

Ireland

1

Ireland

3

Lyon, France (clay)

India

2

France

3

Territet, Switzerland

Switzerland

2

Switzerland

3

Geneva, Switzerland

Czechoslovakia

2

Switzerland

4

Argentina

1

bye

Argentina

Final

France vs. Spain

France 3	Sporting Club, Deauville, France [4] 28 July – 1 August 1923 Clay		Spain 2
1 2 3 4 5 1 René Lacoste Manuel de Gomar 6 3 6 4 5 7 6 4     2 Jean-François Blanchy Eduardo Flaquer 6 1 6 2 3 6 6 1     3 Jacques Brugnon /  Henri Cochet Eduardo Flaquer /  Manuel de Gomar 4 6 6 8 13 11 6 1 4 6   4 René Lacoste Eduardo Flaquer 6 1 6 3 6 2       5 Jean-François Blanchy Manuel de Gomar 3 6 6 2 2 6 2 6

Inter-Zonal Final

Australia vs. France

Australia 4	Longwood Cricket Club, Boston, MA, United States [5] 16–18 August 1923 Grass		France 1
1 2 3 4 5 1 James Anderson René Lacoste 7 5 6 3 6 4       2 John Hawkes Jacques Brugnon 6 2 6 1 7 5       3 James Anderson /  John Hawkes Jacques Brugnon /  René Lacoste 6 8 6 3 6 3 6 8 9 7   4 James Anderson Pierre Hirsch 7 5 6 2 6 0       5 Ian McInnes René Lacoste 2 6 1 6 2 6

Challenge Round

United States vs. Australia

United States 4	West Side Tennis Club, New York, NY, United States [2] 31 August–3 September 1923 Grass		Australia 1
1 2 3 4 5 1 Bill Johnston James Anderson 6 4 2 6 6 2 5 7 2 6   2 Bill Tilden John Hawkes 6 4 6 2 6 1       3 Bill Tilden /  Richard Norris Williams James Anderson /  John Hawkes 17 15 11 13 2 6 6 3 6 2   4 Bill Johnston John Hawkes 6 0 6 2 6 1       5 Bill Tilden James Anderson 6 2 6 3 1 6 7 5

See also

• 1923 Wightman Cup

References

External links

• Davis Cup official website