The President of the International Tennis Federation says the idea that top players are not representing their country in the Davis Cup is a ‘false feeling’ amid the absence of three top 10 stars from this week’s finals.
David Haggerty has defended the format of the event which is concluding in Bologna, Italy with an eight-team knockout tournament. However, Italy’s top player, Jannik Sinner, isn’t playing after opting to have a longer off-season. Fellow compatriot and world No.7 Lorenzo Musetti is another absentee due to a combination of both physical and personal reasons. Finally, Carlos Alcaraz withdrew late due to suffering a hamstring injury while competing at the ATP Finals.
Both Alcaraz and Sinner have indicated they would support a move to hold the Davis Cup every other year in order to increase its appeal and attract more top names to the event. However, Haggerty has dismissed the suggestion that the event is failing to attract star names. Alexander Zverev was the only top-10 player participating in this year’s Finals.
“Davis Cup has been, is and always will be, a team competition. It’s representing your nation and playing for your country,” he said.
“I’ve seen a lot of emotion this week with players after their matches, during their matches, emotions that you don’t see every week.
“There’s this false feeling out there that top players don’t represent their nation. That’s not true. Some of those top players that played in the qualifier round or the second...
The President of the International Tennis Federation says the idea that top players are not representing their country in the Davis Cup is a ‘false feeling’ amid the absence of three top 10 stars ...