Major Davis Cup shake-up on cards

REVAMPED EVENT: STARS AGAINST PROPOSED CHANGES

The most radical overhaul in the 118-year history of the Davis Cup could be given the green light on Thursday as the tennis world gathers in Florida to vote on sweeping reforms which have divided the sport.

Delegates at the International Tennis Federation’s (ITF) annual meeting in Orlando will decide whether proposals pushed by federation chief David Haggerty are to be given the go-ahead.

Haggerty’s proposals will see the Davis Cup’s sprawling existing format, stretched across the calendar year and played in all corners of the globe, condensed into a season-ending event played at a single, neutral venue.

The ITF maintains the newlook Davis Cup would boost the profile of the tournament, which was first held in 1900 when the United States defeated Britain at the Longwood Cricket Club in Boston, Massachusetts.

The changes have appalled some of the greatest names ever to play the sport.

On Saturday, Australians Rod Laver, John Newcombe and Lleyton Hewitt were united in condemning the proposed overhaul.

Newcombe described the overhaul as “a recipe for the death of the Davis Cup as we know it.”

“It is too important for tennis to just let it become another event that has no real meaning,” Newcombe said.

Hewitt disparaged the changes as little more than a “money grab” which ignored its stellar history.

Their misgivings mirrored comments from other regions.

France legend Yannick Noah, who captained the country to the Davis Cup in 2017, said the changes represented the death knell for the tournament.

“How sad. They sold the soul of a historic event. Sorry Mister Davis,” Noah wrote on Twitter.

However the overhaul has won support from Wimbledon champion Novak Djokovic.

“I think that format needs to be changed. And I’m all in favour of that,” Djokovic said.

The Davis Cup reforms require two-thirds majority support from ITF delegates in Orlando on Thursday.

If successful, the new format would be launched in November of 2019, with Europe guaranteed to host the first two editions of the new-look event. –