Laver Cup trophy finds home in Newport for summer

On the heels of the Laver Cup becoming an official part of the ATP tour, the trophy found a new home for the summer at the International Tennis Hall of Fame in Newport, RI.

Who better to welcome the Laver Cup to Newport than John Isner? The world No. 15-ranked American is a Team World member and the top seed at this week’s Hall of Fame Open.

"It’s very good for tennis in general. Any great event has to start somewhere, and I think this one is off to a very, very good start," Isner said. "I think it’s very cool that the trophy is housed here year-round. It makes sense for it to be housed here in this place, which is steeped in so much history."

Isner will play in the third edition of the Laver Cup this September in Geneva alongside Kevin Anderson, Milos Raonic and Denis Shapovalov. So far on Team Europe, the roster includes Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Alexander Zverev, Dominic Thiem and Fabio Fognini.

The Laver Cup was created by Federer as a way to honor Rod Laver, and part of the mission of the team event is to celebrate great players from the past, the present and the future. These stories are woven into the design of the Laver Cup trophy.

Here are some fast facts about the unique hardware:

1

Hand-crafted from solid sterling silver to suggest the shape of a rocket, reflecting Laver’s nickname.

2

Molten metal from part of Laver’s New England Merchant Bank Trophy from the US Pro Tennis Championships has been incorporated into the Laver Cup.

3

Curved arms come together signifying rivals becoming teammates.

4

The 200 notches on the rim represent Laver’s 200 career tennis titles.

5

Two sets of four rings on the base represent Laver’s Grand Slams, in 1962 and 1969.

6

Production of the trophy took more than 400 hours and the Cup stands 26 inches tall and weighs 31 pounds.