Egypt lost in the Davis Cup's Europe/Africa Zone Group II, reports Ghada Abdel-Kader Under the supervision of the International Tennis Federation (ITF), the Egyptian Tennis Federation (ETF) hosted the Europe/Africa Zone Group II playoffs of the 2012 the Davis Cup. In the Group Level II first round, Latvia defeated Egypt 3-2 in Cairo. In the playoffs, Egypt was beaten by Ireland 3- 2 in Cairo. The win kept Ireland in Group Level II while Egypt was relegated to Group level III in 2013. The first day saw the first two singles matches. Ireland's James McGee, 24 and ranked 362 in the world, beat Egypt's Karim Maamoun, 20, ranked 665 in the world, 2-6, 6-4, 6-2,7-5. Egypt's 25-year-old Sherif Sabri, ranked 688, defeated Ireland's Conor Niland, 30, ranked 312, 2-6, 6-1, 6-0, 6-2. On the second day, Ireland's Sam Barry, 20, ranked 706 in the world, and McGee teamed up in doubles to defeat Maamoun and Sabri 3-6, 7- 6(3), 6-2, 7-6(3). On the third day, Maamoun beat Barry 6-3, 6- 7 (4), 6-1, 1-6, 6-4. McGee beat Sabri 6-2, 5-7, 7-5, 3-6, 6-4. All matches were played at the Gezira Sporting Club in Cairo from 6-8 April. Irish team captain Garry Cahill told Al-Ahram Weekly this was not his first time in Egypt. "I was here before in the Fed Cup in 2009. I switched from the Fed Cup to the Davis Cup in 2009. "It was different for some players. They were in the same tournaments together. We warm up together. We travelled here together started to trained few days before the tournament", added Cahill. "We expected to find a peaceful atmosphere after the 25 January Revolution." Apparently they did. Egypt first played in the Davis Cup in 1929. Its best performance was reaching the Europe/ Africa Zone Group I semi-finals, which it achieved in 1982 and 1985. Denmark's first Davis Cup appearance was back in 1921. It was a quarter-finalist in 1988 and also reached the Europe Zone final in 1927, 1950 and 1953. The Davis Cup by BNP Paribas is the largest annual international team competition in sport. One of the cornerstones of the tennis year, this prestigious event gives players the chance to represent their country in an otherwise individual sport. Founded by Dwight Davis in 1900, the Davis Cup began as a challenge match between the United States and the British Isles, which was held at the Longwood Cricket Club in Boston in the US. Davis himself played in the inaugural Davis Cup tie, steering his country to the first of many title victories. The US has won the Davis Cup 32 times, more than any other nation. BNP Paribas replaced NEC as title sponsor of the event in 2002 after joining the Davis Cup family as an international sponsor in 2001. Entering the 2010 Davis Cup by BNP Paribas were 133 countries, with the leading 16 nations contesting the World Group.
