Lleyton Hewitt slams ‘stupid’ Davis Cup Finals format
It has been a busy week of Davis Cup action, with Australian captain Lleyton Hewitt once again criticising the format of the competition, despite his nation advancing to the quarter-finals.
Australia were part of Group B, that was played in Valencia, alongside Spain, Czechia and France, but were without top ranked player Alex de Minaur, who withdrew from the team due to injury.
Despite De Minaur’s absence, Australia won both of their opening group ties against Czechia and France and confirmed their qualification to the next stage.
Team 🇦🇺 🔜 Malaga
Australia book their place in the final 8 in Malaga! #DavisCup pic.twitter.com/RNZjrJZqyG
— Davis Cup (@DavisCup) September 13, 2024
With the Davis Cup Finals group stage taking place just days after the conclusion of the US Open, Hewitt has criticised the current scheduling of the event.
“We’ve had a few guys this week pretty banged up – and it’s only really our locker room knows that,” said Hewitt. “It would have been very easy for a few of my boys to not turn up this week, but they’ve come and they put on the green and gold, and done absolutely everything I’ve asked of them. I’m super proud.”
The former No.1 continued, “To try and ask players to play the second day after a Grand Slam finishes, it’s not easy. In the old format, I used to have to do it, but you’d at least have until the Friday before you had to play. Now to play on Tuesday, it’s ridiculous.”
This format has been in place since 2019, with the old structure of the competition being played as one off home-and-away ties throughout the season, and Hewitt has been very vocal about his disapproval since it was introduced five years ago
After both nations confirmed their qualification from the group, Spain and Australia still had to play their round-robin match yesterday with nothing on the line.
Spain won the tie on a decisive doubles match, with Hewitt expressing his frustration about the format following his team’s defeat.
“That’s the stupid part of this format, isn’t it? You know, I can keep saying it,” continued Hewitt. “But the format is what it is, and we’ll do what we need to do to get through and give ourselves a chance of hopefully holding up the trophy.”
Hewitt’s Australia have now advanced to the Davis Cup Finals in Malaga once again, as they look to better their runner-up finishes in the past two years.
The 28-time tournament champions will play their quarter-final match against either Italy or the United States of America in November.
Inside the baseline…
It is of no secret that Lleyton Hewitt is not a fan of this Davis Cup format in the slightest, and almost every year he expresses that when asked about it by the media. However, the Australian’s have really impressed in this competition over the past couple of years, having reached the finals in consecutive years. What is even more impressive is that they have qualified for the quarter-finals this year without their best player, and with Alex de Minaur fit they will be a big title contender in November.
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