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Andy Murray and co support tennis world cup

Andy Murray is in support of ways of revamping tennis © Getty Images

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Times article

Some of tennis' leading male players, including Andy Murray, are backing a revolutionary scheme to stage a world cup.

A report in The Times said although plans are at an early stage, administrators and television executives have already been consulted. The event would be for men only as the feedback has indicated less commercial appeal in a women's competition.

The indications are that it would be a biennial tournament involving 32 teams and would last for ten days. There would be substitutes, knock-out rounds and time limitations on matches, all aimed at appealing to a new, younger market.

The idea originated with a Melbourne-based sports marketing agency. "Today's consumers want their entertainment in a different form," said James Hird, a former Australian Rules footballer who is now one of the firm's partners. "Of course, the pride of tennis are the grand-slam tournaments and we would never do anything to change that, but we are conscious of the need for tennis to bring in an entire new breed of followers - the youngster who doesn't have the attention span to watch five-set matches.

"Our initial feedback [from players] has been very good. We are conscious of the fact that we do not want this event to be an extra burden on the players, so the desire is to find a new place for it in the calendar."

Serbian world No. 3 Novak Djokovic admitted the ATP Players' Council was behind the plan. "Well, we proposed it," he said. "But it's all very fresh and it's all ideas."

Were it to go ahead then it would almost certainly end the Davis Cup, an event whose profile has gradually diminished in recent years. "I am a great fan of the Davis Cup, but if a decision was taken to drop it, or something else could change in the calendar, then a World Cup is a fascinating idea," British No. 1 Murray told The Times.

Those views were backed by Croatia's Ivan Ljubicic, who said the Davis Cup had become outdated. "It's because the format is not suited for the players at the moment," he said. "Maybe it was perfect 20 or 30 years ago, but not it's really too much for us. It's a shame because I'm 100% sure that every player would love to play for his nation."

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