Home

Tennis

“You Can’t Buy History With Money” – Alexander Zverev Hits Back at Gerard Pique’s Failure at Rebooting Davis Cup

Published 02/04/2023, 6:00 AM EST

Follow Us

via Getty

Alexander Zverev has voiced his opinion on the recent revival attempt of the Davis Cup by the former Spanish and Barcelona FC soccer legend, Gerard Pique. The International Tennis Federation (ITF) recently ended its deal with the Kosmos group. Pique was the man behind the group, and the future of the prestigious competition remains uncertain.

In a recent interview, Zverev criticized the new format of the competition and pointed out that the Davis Cup lives on emotions.

Alexander Zverev voices his strong opinion against Pique’s Davis Cup revival attempt

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

The ITF has issued a statement that they are the custodians of the competition. They have financial contingencies in place to ensure that the 2023 Qualifiers and Finals will go ahead as scheduled. Zverev’s comment has sparked a lot of discussion and debate about the future of the Davis Cup. Many fans believe that the new format doesn’t do justice to the competition’s rich history. As reported by the Express UK, Zverev, while talking to reporters ahead of Germany’s tie, shared, “You saw that you can’t buy history with money. Sport lives from emotions and the Davis Cup was always the competition where you experienced the biggest emotions and the best atmosphere.”

He argued that the Davis Cup has always been about home and away ties and that the new format simply fails to capture the essence of the competition.

Trending

Get instantly notified of the hottest Tennis stories via Google! Click on Follow Us and Tap the Blue Star.

Follow Us

via Reuters

The new format aims to provide a more attractive proposition for the players and increase the competition’s revenue. The Davis Cup is the oldest and the largest international team event in tennis.

Retired Spanish Legend Takes Up New Charge at Gerard Pique’s Revamped Davis Cup

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

Numerous fans believe that the new format is necessary to modernize the competition. Regardless of the opinions, the Davis Cup is facing a critical crossroads, and its future will probably depend on the decisions of the ITF. While Zverev’s comments have sparked a lot of discussions, it remains to be seen what the future holds for the historic competition.

A former Davis Cup captain also voiced his displeasure with the format

In 2019, the tournament with a revamped format was held in Madrid. While the initial reaction from fans wasn’t positive, Spain’s matches attracted a lot of attention. The ormer Croatian tennis player, Nikola Pilic, served as the team captain when Croatia won its first Davis Cup in 2005. He had expressed his concern with the new format of the event. Pilic felt that the new format did not preserve the atmosphere that the tournament was known for.

ADVERTISEMENT

Article continues below this ad

WATCH THIS STORY: Arm Felt like It Weighed 100 Kilos’ – Top Rival Narrates Gruesome Experience of Facing Serena Williams in Her Prime

He had criticized the involvement of Barcelona footballer Gerard Pique and others who had brought in a lot of money, as he called the situation a disaster. Pilic questioned where the atmosphere that used to symbolize the Davis Cup had gone. Do you think Zverev and Pilic have a point? Let us know in the comments.

SHARE THIS ARTICLE :

Written by:

Dr Aditya Raveendran Menon

963Articles

One take at a time

Aditya Menon is a Tennis Author at EssentiallySports. He developed an unbridled love for tennis from the moment his father introduced him to the sport. Watching Roger Federer dominate the ATP tour with his unique and effortless style played a pivotal role in pushing Aditya to write about tennis for national publications.
Show More>

Edited by:

Tony Thomas