Eyal Ran
Eyal Ran (born 21 November 1972) is an Israeli former professional tennis player and former captain of the Israel Davis Cup team.[8][9] The stage was set by Safin, who prior to the tie told the press: "With all due respect, Israel was lucky to get to the quarterfinals.[13] With the tie clinched for Israel, the reverse singles rubbers were "dead", and instead of best-of-five matches, best-of-three sets were played, with the outcomes of little to no importance.[14] Israel wrapped up a 4–1 victory over Russia, as Levy defeated Kunitsyn 6–4, 4–6, 7–6(2), while Sela retired with a wrist injury while down 3–4 in the first set against Andreev.[3] Ran said: "I’m happy I guided the team to the Davis Cup semifinals and for the privilege I had of coaching players like Andy Ram, Yoni Erlich, Noam Okun, Amir Hadad, Harel Levy, Amir Weintraub and Dudi Sela to great achievements... I’m also happy I had the privilege of coaching Israel’s future team: Yshai Oliel, Edan Leshem, Daniel Cukierman, Ben Patael and Mor Bulis...."[3]