How Team USA won the first ever Billie Jean King Cup in London 62 years ago

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The first-ever Billie Jean King Cup was played 62 years ago in 1963.

After watching the men battle it out in the Davis Cup for over 50 years, the stars of women’s tennis wanted a team competition of their own.

The ‘Federation Cup‘ was born in 1963, as 16 teams travelled to London, England, with title ambitions.

Perhaps unsurprisingly, the Americans entered the event as one of the favorites, led by Billie Jean King, the woman the event is now named after.

Team USA emerged victorious all those years ago, but that’s not to say they had it easy…

How the United States won the 1963 Billie Jean King Cup

The following 16 teams took part in the inaugural Billie Jean King Cup at the Queen’s Club (grass).

• Australia
• Belgium
• Denmark
• Hungary
• South Africa
• Czechoslovakia
• France
• West Germany
• Norway
• Austria
• Canada
• Great Britain
• Switzerland
• Netherlands
• Italy
• United States

Team USA played their first Billie Jean King Cup tie against Italy on June 17, 1963, with three-time major singles champion Darlene Hard kicking things off against Lea Pericoli.

Hard won in three sets, as did King in the second match, before the team of Hard and Carole Caldwell dominated in the doubles to secure a 3-0 victory.

Moving on, the Americans played the Netherlands in the quarterfinals.

Team USA barely got out of second gear, as they dropped a total of 11 games across the three matches to clinch another 3-0 win.

A tougher test was expected in the semis, however, taking on Great Britain, a team containing two Grand Slam winners, Ann Jones and Christine Truman.

Hard gave the United States a 1-0 lead before King battled past Truman in a deciding set to put the tie to bed.

When Hard and Caldwell won the doubles, the United States advanced to the final without losing a single match.

Interestingly, their opponents in the final, Australia, had done the same.

Someone’s perfect record was going to have to go, but before the final could begin, the weather threw a spanner into the works.

The threat of heavy rain saw the tie moved indoors, as the first-ever Billie Jean King Cup final was played on wood.

It was the Americans who blinked first in the final, when Australian tennis legend Margaret Court defeated Hard 6-3, 6-0 in the opener.

Needing to win back-to-back games to survive, King fought back from a set down to beat Lesley Turner in match number two.

King returned for the doubles, playing alongside Hard against Court and Turner, with the title on the line.

After dropping the first set 3-6, the Americans outlasted their Australian rivals in a marathon second set 13-11 to take things all the way.

The inaugural tournament was to be decided by just one set, with two of the biggest names in women’s tennis standing opposite one another.

Court and King gave it their all for their respective nations, but after four days of thrilling action, it was King, Hard, and Caldwell who lifted the title.

Their win was the first of many for the United States, who remain the most successful team in the history of the competition.

Team USA’s 18 Billie Jean King Cup titles

Following their 1963 triumph, Team USA added a further 17 titles over the next 54 years…

The Americans would love nothing more than to add a 19th title to their tally in 2025 as they head to Shenzhen, China, for the Billie Jean King Cup Finals.

Team USA’s route to the Billie Jean King Cup title

• QF vs Kazakhstan
• SF vs Japan/Great Britain
• F vs Italy/China/Spain/Ukraine

Only time will tell if Team USA can pick up the title, but you certainly won’t want to miss any of the action.

The Americans will begin their Billie Jean King Cup campaign against Kazakhstan in the quarterfinals on Thursday, September 18.