The decision has been made, but the discussions are not over. The “new” Davis Cup causes displeasure among players, coaches and officials – including Boris Becker and Lucas Pouille.
Boris Becker lacked the words to express his disappointment and anger. So he sent photos around the world illustrating his state of mind. One shows a tombstone with the inscription: “Here lies the Davis Cup. 1900 – 2018.”
Becker mourns a competition that he himself has shaped like few other players. Hartford 1987, Gothenburg 1988, Stuttgart 1989 In a collage on Friday morning, Becker revived the emotions of days long past. “Once upon a time…”, the tennis icon headlined the contribution to the Davis Cup reform.
Reform? For many of the tour’s companions – whether players, coaches or officials – the decision of the ITF is the irrevocable end of a 118-year-old tradition. The critics expect the Davis Cup to be stillborn, and some give it no more than two years in its new format.
Lucas Pouille, France’s top 17th-placed player in the world, was so deeply affected that he directly attacked the members of parliament at the Association Day in Orlando/Florida. “You guys are a disgrace to tennis,” Pouille wrote, receiving encouragement from Australia’s team boss Lleyton Hewitt.
Meanwhile, these “guys” let themselves be celebrated for their coup. ITF President David Haggerty from the USA smiled into the camera with football star Gerard Pique, the Spanish ex-world champion is the face of the investment group Kosmos, which had offered the unimaginable sum of allegedly three billion dollars for the Davis Cup.
Haggerty and Co. see the chances, for the rest of the tennis world there are still open questions. The most burning: What happens if the stars stay away despite the new mode? A final tournament at the end of November, when most players recover from a strenuous season, appears to be a big risk.
“Break and season preparation will be further shortened by the appointment. This also increases the risk of injury and downtime for the players,” says Germany’s team captain Michael Kohlmann. Should Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal or Alexander Zverev prefer to go on holiday than to serve in Madrid or Lille in 2019, the fate of the Davis Cup is more uncertain than ever.
In fact, such a scenario threatens, because the team competition has now finally lost its unique selling point. In September Federer will host the Laver Cup with some top pros, from January 2020 the ATP has planned a team event in Australia, which will hardly differ from the Davis Cup, which took place a few weeks ago.
Other unanswered questions make the “new” Davis Cup seem like an unfinished rush. In which mode will the qualifiers be played in February? Like in the final with three matches over two sets each or as usual with four singles and one double over the full distance?
Who guarantees the promised three billion dollars over the next 25 years with which Haggerty has lured many small associations? “So many questions that money can’t answer,” wrote national coach Barbara Rittner on Twitter.
By the way: What about the Fed Cup? The world federation has not yet been able to take care of the women’s competition, the reform of which is to follow in 2020. This decision will certainly not be made without a sound.