Apparently there will still be home and away matches in the Davis Cup, but before the big final. Meanwhile there are also reform plans for the Fed Cup.
In an interview with the British Telegraph, ITF President David Haggerty announced that there should not only be the much criticised year-end finale (in a neutral location). The home and away matches would remain part of the Davis Cup, at least in the early phase of the annual competition.
“We’ll probably have 24 home and away matches in February, the week after the Australian Open,” Haggerty said. “So there will be 12 winners. They will then play the November tournament, together with last year’s four semi-finalists and two invited teams.” It is important for the national associations to have meetings in their own country, the US-American continued.
However, this would be a disadvantage for the large associations: Should the same teams always reach the semi-finals, they would not have to compete in the February round and would therefore not have any Davis Cup matches in their own country.
Furthermore, it is possible that the final event will take place in Europe, Haggerty continued. A few months ago it was said that this should be held in Asia or the Middle East. “It would be easier for players to stay in Europe,” Haggerty said at the ATP World Tour Finals in London. However, if they say goodbye to the British metropolis after 2020, this could change.
The Fed Cup will also be re-released. Many associations had criticized the ITF for not saying a word about the women’s team competition in all the reform plans. In the coming year, both world groups are to be included in a group of 16. The winner will then be chosen by one of the semi-finalists during a “Final Four” event. After all, the Fed Cup could be the same in 2020 as the Davis Cup next year.
However, the Davis Cup reform still requires the two-thirds approval of the ITF at its annual meeting. According to Haggerty, a simple majority at board level is sufficient for the Fed Cup reform.
The World Team Cup planned by the ATP in Australia at the beginning of the season also seems to remain in the stars. ATP boss Chris Kermode told BBC Sport: “It makes no sense to have two team events. I think that would be crazy. Let’s hope it doesn’t happen.” Very good talks had been held between ATP and ITF.
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