Mauresmo withdraws as France Davis Cup captain, prefers to coach compatriot Pouille
>> PARIS: Former world No.1 Amelie Mauresmo has turned her back on becoming France’s new Davis Cup captain, opting instead to work with French player Lucas Pouille.
A statement from the French Tennis Federation on Thursday confirmed the U-turn by the 39-year-old who had been named in June to become the first woman to captain the French team.
Mauresmo, who previously captained France’s Fed Cup team, was to due take over from Yannick Noah, whose third stint in charge ended in a disappointing defeat by Croatia in last month’s final held in Lille’s soccer stadium.
“[Amelie Mauresmo] has accepted this challenge and renounces the position of captain of the Davis Cup France team to carry out this mission,” the statement said.
“The French Tennis Federation supports and encourages this project which serves the interests of French tennis.”
Pierre Cherret, the FFT’s National Technical Director, said he would begin the process of finding a new Davis Cup captain who would also be responsible for the men’s team at the 2020 Olympic Games in Tokyo.
Mauresmo had expressed disappointment at the International Tennis Federation’s (ITF) decision to revamp the Davis Cup from next year in conjunction with Spanish investment group Kosmos with whom they agreed a 25-year US$3 billion deal. An ITF vote in August gave the green light to replace the current ‘home and away’ World Group format with an 18-nation finals week to be staged in Madrid next November.