Davis Cup | Time for the next generation to step up, says Wesley Koolhof

Tennis is no more the preserve of just the young. The likes of Novak Djokovic and Stan Wawrinka in singles, and Rohan Bopanna and Rajeev Ram in doubles, have battled Father Time quite successfully.

Former doubles World No. 1 Wesley Koolhof, though, did not even bother getting into that fight. A content man, he retired at the end of the 2024 season aged 35. He was still World No. 8, and in 2023, he had won Wimbledon, his only men’s doubles Slam title.

“I am very happy with my decision,” Koolhof told The Hindu, on the sidelines of Netherlands’ Davis Cup fixture versus India, where he is the visitors’ assistant coach. “It’s time for the next generation to step up and I am here to bring my knowledge.”

Interestingly, Koolhof’s last appearance was in the Davis Cup Finals tie where the legendary Rafael Nadal bowed out of competitive tennis.

Koolhof and Botic van de Zandschulp won the decisive doubles rubber in two tie-break sets over Carlos Alcaraz and Marcel Granollers to end Spain’s campaign in the quarterfinal.

Netherlands eventually lost its maiden final, to Italy in straightforward fashion, but the run brought tennis back into the limelight in a country that is still searching for its first Grand Slam singles champion since Richard Krajicek (Wimbledon 1996).

“When Spain announced that Nadal was playing, there was so much media attention,” Koolhof recalled. “There are a lot of Dutch people too in Malaga and the atmosphere was unbelievable.

“Overall, it was good. Got a bit more publicity. Football is top, but it was good for Dutch tennis.”