Gauff, Keys, Li, Townsend, Melichar-Martinez to Represent U.S. in BJK Cup vs. Hungary in Delray
October 21, 2026
ORLANDO, Fla., October 21, 2026 – The USTA today announced that two-time Grand Slam® singles champion and world No. 5 Coco Gauff, 2025 Australian Open singles champion and world No. 21 Madison Keys, world singles No. 25 Ann Li, four-time Grand Slam doubles champion and world doubles No. 2 Taylor Townsend and world doubles No. 9 Nicole Melichar-Martinez have been nominated to compete for the U.S. Billie Jean King Cup Team as it takes on Hungary in a pivotal Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge Playoff competition November 21-22 at the Delray Beach Tennis Center.
The Hungarian team has nominated world singles No. 75 Ana Bondar, No. 153 Dalma Galfi, No. 445 Amarissa Toth, doubles No. 60 Fanny Stollar and doubles No. 187 Adrienn Nagy.
Billie Jean King Cup is the World Cup of Women’s Tennis. The Playoff is a best-of-five match series between the U.S. and Hungary played over Saturday and Sunday, with the winner returning to the Qualifying pool and having the chance to compete for the BJK Cup championship in 2027. Two-day ticket packages are on sale via Ticketmaster.com and are available for $50. Single-day tickets for Saturday or Sunday are on sale for $35. Visit usta.com/billiejeankingcup for more information.
Matches will start at 1:30 p.m. ET both Saturday and Sunday. Saturday’s schedule will feature two singles matches between each country’s top two nominated players. Sunday’s schedule will feature a doubles match, then two more singles matches to decide the tie. The first nation between the USA and Hungary to win three out of those five matches wins the Playoff, with an amended Sunday schedule possible if either nation clinches victory in the third or fourth match of the weekend. Tennis Channel will carry coverage in the U.S.
Captains may make up to three changes to their nominated rosters by November 20. The U.S. is captained by International Tennis Hall of Famer and U.S. Billie Jean Cup legend Lindsay Davenport, who captained the American side to the BJK Cup final in 2025. Hungary is captained by Kornel Bardoczky.
Gauff, 22, led the U.S. Billie Jean King Cup team to a 4-0 sweep of Austria the last time the U.S. women played in her native Delray Beach, in 2023. Since then, she’s won both the US Open and French Open titles and has gone 47-15 in singles this year, including semifinal appearances at both the US Open and Wimbledon.
Keys, 31, is coming off a year in which she won her 11th career WTA title and went 35-15 in singles. The 2025 Australian Open singles champion has represented the U.S. in Billie Jean King Cup eight times since debuting in 2014. This would mark her competitive debut at the Delray Beach Tennis Center.
Li, 26, is ranked a career-high No. 25 in singles on the heels of beating Aryna Sabalenka to reach the W1000 quarterfinals in Wuhan, China, last week. A Philadelphia-area native, Li won her second career WTA singles title last year on hard courts in Guangzhou before breaking into the Top 30 for the first time this year. This is her debut Billie Jean King Cup nomination.
Townsend, 30, is ranked No. 2 in doubles and has a 39-4 doubles record in 2026. This year she also completed the doubles Career Grand Slam by winning the French Open and US Open. Townsend is 6-2 all-time in Billie Jean King Cup competition since debuting in 2015.
Melichar-Martinez, 33, is ranked No. 9 in doubles and has won two of her 20 career doubles titles in 2026. She represented the U.S. in its Billie Jean King Cup Qualifying competition earlier this year in Belgium and won, partnering with Caty McNally.
Delray Beach has historically provided a veritable home-court advantage for the USA in international team tennis competition. The U.S. Billie Jean King Cup team is 4-0 all-time when competing at the Delray Beach Tennis Center, the last such victory coming in 2023, when Gauff and Jessica Pegula led a sweep of Austria in front of near sell-out crowds.
Billie Jean King Cup and Davis Cup events have also been a boon to their host communities. Delray Beach hosted a Davis Cup qualifying competition between the U.S. and Czechia last September, which generated more than $2 million for the local economy.
Wilson is the official ball of all U.S. Billie Jean King Cup home ties.