LONDON: The International Tennis Federation (ITF) has hit back at accusations that there has been a lack of transparency about the proposed revamp of the Davis Cup and said it was confident the new plans would deliver long-term benefits to players, nations and sponsors.
Tennis Australia had said in a strongly worded letter seen by Reuters that it planned to “vote against the proposed amendments” at the ITF’s Aug. 13-16 AGM in Orlando, Florida, since the reform process had been “far from transparent”.
Tennis Europe, a regional governing body representing 50 member nations, also said it opposed the ITF’s plans to transform the 118-year-old Davis Cup into an 18-team, one-week season finale that is due to be held in November 2019.
However, the ITF said the Davis Cup’s new guise as the World Cup of Tennis would safeguard the future of the sport as it was being set up in a 25-year, $3 billion partnership with investment group Kosmos and also had the backing of Wimbledon, French and U.S. Open officials.
“The ITF has travelled extensively to consult with all stakeholders in tennis and incorporated their feedback to develop a reform package for the Davis Cup which delivers long-term benefits for players, nations, fans, sponsors and broadcasters,” the ITF said in a statement on Saturday.
Tennis Europe said there was no clarity about how Kosmos, which was founded by Barcelona and Spain soccer player Gerard Pique, planned to guarantee “US$120 million per year which would be the $3 billion deal over 25 years”.
The ITF’s shake-up of the Davis Cup has been undermined after the men’s governing body, the ATP, announced plans to introduce a rival 24-team World Team Cup, offering $15 million in prize money plus ranking points, into the calendar from early 2020 in Australia. The ATP’s venture is endorsed by Tennis Australia.
A smaller World Team Cup was held from 1978 to 2012 in Duesseldorf, Germany, but offered no ranking points.
The new competition is expected to be a part of the build-up to January’s Australian Open.
The prospect of staging two rival team competitions within a few weeks in a crowded men’s calendar has put the ITF and ATP on a collision course as many players may opt to compete in only one of the events. (Reuters)
