After the 3-1 defeat to China, P.R. in September, Conor Niland’s side will have to beat Syria to maintain Ireland’s place in Davis Cup Group II
By Stephen Higgins
The Irish Davis Cup team has been drawn against Syria in the crucial Group II relegation play-off in February 2026. Captain Conor Niland’s side will enjoy home advantage for the tie against the side ranked no.72 in the world.
“We are very excited to have the benefit of a home tie for this crucial tie against Syria next February. We relish the opportunity to play in front of our fantastic home supporters,” said Niland after the draw.
It will be the first ever meeting between the two teams, but given their respective rankings, 50 and 72, Ireland will be going in as favourites. Syria first competed in the Davis Cup in 1986 and have never gone beyond Group II in the tournament. Ireland has competed in the event since 1923 and famously played in the World Group in 1983 before defeat to John McEnroe’s US team.
Regardless of that, Syria has been buoyed by promotion from Group III this summer. In July, Lays Salim’s Syrian team finished second to Indonesia in Group B after three wins from four. In the promotion play-off final, Syria beat Saudi Arabia 2-1, leaving only Ireland in the way of their return to Group II for the first time since 2013. Salim’s team is spearheaded by Hazem Naw. He was ranked inside the ATP’s top 300 at one stage though he is now at 949. Naw was born in Aleppo and has an older brother, Amer, who also represented Syria in the Davis Cup.
Ireland meanwhile are likely to call on some if not all of the players who represented us so well against China People’s Republic at the National Sports Campus recently. While the first day of singles went to the higher-ranked visitors Yunchaokete Bu and Yi Zhou, day two saw Conor Gannon and David O’Hare edged in the doubles before Michael Agwi earned his first home singles point.
The top Syrian player meanwhile will bring much experience to the encounter. As the brutal civil war engulfed his country, Naw left Syria for Germany at the age of 17 and settled in Cologne. Like Agwi, the 25-year-old has competed in the high-level German Bundesliga and he enjoyed some memorable wins on the professional tour in 2024.
After earning the first Challenger match win ever for his nation at Koblenz in February, Naw went on to make the semi-finals of that tournament where he beat the former top 40 player Oscar Otte. Naw also made the last four of another Challenger in August 2024 and has recorded a victory over current top 60 player Arthur Rinderknech. The Syrian no.1 has a formidable 14-2 singles record in the Davis Cup and is supported by Taym Al Azmeh, Yacoub Makzoume and Rabee Saleem on international duty.
In recent years, Salim has primarily selected Naw and Al Azmeh in singles with Makzoume a mainstay in the doubles. Al Azmeh plays college tennis for Michigan State and hit a career high ranking of 719 in July 2024. The 21-year-old has a 9-6 record in the Davis Cup with five of those victories in singles.
Meanwhile, 30-year-old Makzoume has a current singles ranking outside the top 1,000 and has played 27 ties for his country with an overall record of 21-17. Saleem (unranked) has been called up 15 times for Syria and holds an 8-12 record in singles and doubles.
As the 2025 season concludes, the Irish Davis Cup team looks to be progressing well with Agwi, Peter Buldorini, Conor Gannon and Ammar Elamin all regular participants on the professional tour. With all four men aged 23 or younger, there will hopefully be many more exciting home ties for Irish fans to enjoy in the coming years.
Stay tuned to Tennis Ireland’s social channels and its newsletter for further announcements about the upcoming Davis Cup clash with Syria.
