Rhys De Deugd recounts golden moments from Australia’s Davis and Billie Jean King Cup Finals campaigns in Malaga as he joins the teams as a content producer.
Malaga, Spain, 25 November 2024 | Rhys de Deugd
The prospect of having both Australian men’s and women’s tennis teams competing at the same venue for world championship titles is a unique one.
It brought an opportunity forward to have me, Tennis Australia’s social media and content producer, alongside the teams for the first time.
Welcome to ‘diaries of a content producer’, recounting my major highlights from a whirlwind fortnight at the Billie Jean King (BJK) and Davis Cup Finals in Malaga.
The Arrival
I arrived in Malaga on Wednesday 13 November when over 4200 residents were evacuated from the region following torrential rains that caused widespread damage and disruption.
To say the start of my trip was crazy and stressful is a mild understatement.
As the streets of the city centre turned into rivers, the Spanish weather agency issued a red alert. Rainfall reached up to 70mm in just one hour, marking some of the coastal town’s worst flooding in decades.
To add to this, the airline lost my luggage, and I struggled to get an Uber out of the airport. Turns out, the city was completely flooded and locked down.
I don’t know much Spanish, but I understood what the Uber driver meant when he said “Malaga … mucho problemo.”
I managed to get the Uber driver to turn around and head the other direction while Lauren Coridas, the Australian BJK Cup team manager, sorted me a room at the team’s accommodation. What a saint.
I was drained and emotional, but it was so nice to be around the women’s team for dinner and finally be in a bed after a long journey to get there.
Still in my filthy clothes and without toiletries, I stayed the night at their resort and quickly walked to an outlet in the morning to get some necessities.
Then I went straight to the courts to see the new stadium for the first time and be around the Australian women’s team for their first practices.
The Billie Jean King Cup
The camaraderie was infectious, and I was already creating connections with the team.
In the days leading up to their quarterfinal tie, my job was under threat as the players, particularly Daria Saville, took great pleasure in the creative direction of what was to be produced. But their enthusiasm helped create fun pieces that were more authentic and relatable to audiences back in Australia.
Seeing if the Australian @BJKCup team is on the same page 🗒️#GoAussies #BJKCup pic.twitter.com/tF0hU71DLp
— TennisAustralia (@TennisAustralia) November 16, 2024
My luggage eventually arrived, meaning I could now don the green and gold for the first time.
Entering the pop-up Billie Jean King Cup stadium with the team gave me goosebumps and nerves, despite the fact I was holding a camera and not a racquet.
Soon the stands began to pack with fans, and I took my seat next to the players’ bench as the introductions and pre-match light show created intense anticipation.
The national anthems played, and emotions got the better of me as I started to cry. This was a special feeling.
Although the Australians lost their quarterfinal tie to eventual finalists Slovakia, the overall experience and connection with the team is something I will treasure forever.
The Rafael Nadal Farewell
It would be remiss to leave out the fact that one of Spain’s greatest-ever athletes was calling time on his illustrious career in Malaga.
Murals and billboards filled the city streets with the lettering ‘Gracias Rafa’, and watching the thousands of fans dressed in red and yellow throughout the week, you knew that they were flocking just to catch a glimpse the great Rafael Nadal one last time before he retired.
The BJK Cup team was lucky enough to get more than a glimpse, capturing some golden content. Waiting for Nadal to finish practice and pretending to take a team photo in the path he was about to walk past, we politely asked if he would join the photo. There it was – the video of the event.
> WATCH VIDEO HERE: Australian BJK Cup team get photo with Rafael Nadal
At the 11th hour, I was able to score a seat in the stadium for what ended up being his final professional match. Yet another ‘pinch myself’ moment, watching my childhood hero sprint from the net to the bassline for the final time.
The arena had an atmosphere more comparable to a European football game than a tennis match. And while the 22-time Grand Slam champion fought hard against giant-killer Botic Van De Zandschulp, Nadal was unable to pull out a fairytale victory.
The Davis Cup
After the Billie Jean Cup competition concluded, all eyes turned to the Davis Cup teams, including last year’s finalists Australia.
Working alongside the legendary Aussie team felt in a way like I had finally made it to where I dreamed of being as a young tennis hopeful in low junior sections of my local tennis competition.
There was an aura around captain Lleyton Hewitt and the team, in how they went about their business in practice and their routine. It felt like the team truly believed they were in it to go one better this year and lift the cup for the first time since 2003.
The quarterfinals set the stage for an epic showdown: Australia against the United States – the greatest rivalry in Davis Cup history.
I sat courtside for an epic battle in the opening singles rubber, as Thanasi Kokkinakis upset American Ben Shelton in a deciding tiebreak for the history books, and in my opinion the match of the tournament.
I marvelled courtside at how both athletes consistently fired down serves of over 210 km/h, right up until the final point of the final-set tiebreak at 15-14, where a calm Kokkinakis sealed it after saving four match points.
The group was filled with overwhelming joy as Jordan Thompson and Matt Ebden secured the tie with a doubles victory.
Standing behind the camera, I felt a surge of pride and emotion. Witnessing the pure elation, I felt part of it.
Two days later when the team faced Italy, it was a contrasting feeling of heartbreak as the 2024 Davis Cup journey came to an end for the boys in green and gold.
I hope to live these experiences at the final stages of the ‘world cup of tennis’.
Just like the team, I feel hungry for more success.
Find your way to play: Visit play.tennis.com.au to get out on court and have some fun!
