Pierre-Hugues Herbert suffered a bitter defeat against Croatia in the Davis Cup final with France. After the last “real” edition of the traditional tournament, the double-specialist is now regaining ground against the new format.
Pierre-Hugues Herbert and Nicolas Mahut scored the only point for France in the Davis Cup final. The doubles specialists prevailed against Ivan Dodig and Mate Pavic and shortened to 1:2, but could not change anything at the end of the final weekend.
After 2015, Croatia triumphed for the second time in the Nations Cup and thus also won the last edition of the “old” Davis Cup. The new format already caused a lot of displeasure among active players and responsible persons, now Herbert also reported with drastic words: “We hope that the new format will fail and that we will return to the old one”.
In addition, the Frenchman said after the lost final: “We all took a picture together before the stadium, because it could be the last time that this competition was played like that. Last year Herbert won the coveted trophy with France and also played a big role in the national dress this year.
In addition to Herbert, France captain Yannick Noah criticized the revolution of the traditional tournament for the first time. For a long time, the tennis legend held herself in contemplation and broke his silence: “Why don’t we just tell the truth? We won’t experience such an atmosphere anymore. It won’t be the same anymore. I hope people don’t call it the Davis Cup, because it’s not the Davis Cup.”
The French captain, who has been with the team for many years, even adds to the situation and takes a side blow against those responsible for the new format: “If they say that this is the new Davis Cup, then they’re lying”.
Some of the top stars have already cancelled the next edition in 2019. Herbert, too, does not know if he will compete: “It is still too early to say anything. I’m still sad that we’ve lost and that feeling is dominating right now.”