Novak Djokovic, who will make his debut at the Dubai tournament as world number 1 this Monday, insisted on the need to merge the ATP Cup, whose first edition was played in January in Australia, with the Davis Cup to create a new “Super Cup”.
“I think (ATP Cup and Davis Cup) should merge,” said Djokovic, who won his eighth Australian Open title last month and led Serbia to the first ATP Cup.
The two competitions were played less than two months apart, the Davis Cup in Madrid in November at the end of the season and the ATP Cup in January. Both tournaments by teams have a very similar format.
The merger is “necessary because for me, personally, it will be very difficult to play both tournaments every year; I will have to choose ”, warned the Serbian, 32 years old and who is also the president of the ATP Players Council.
“I do not think it is a sustainable model for our tennis,” added Djokovic, who is committed to the creation of a ‘Super Cup’ to replace the other two tournaments.
Djokovic is also not convinced by the new Davis Cup format, which is played concentrated in a week and in a single city.
“What I don’t like is that you don’t have the possibility to play at home,” he said.
He also criticizes that the ATP Cup will be held in Australia for 10 years: “It’s difficult to call it a World Cup because you don’t have a global dimension if you stay in the same place for 10 years.” Afp