The ATP World Tour have announced that they will partner with Tennis Australia to form the World Team Cup, which will start in 2020.
The idea of having a World Team Cup has been rumoured for months now with the tournament set to rival the Davis Cup as the traditional team competition goes through some possible changes of its own. However the ATP World Tour have today confirmed that there will be a new world team cup starting from 2020 subject to a contract with Tennis Australia.
Just like the suggested Davis Cup format, which is subject to an August vote, it will feature 24 teams and it will offer 15 million US dollars in prize money as well as ATP ranking points. The ATP executive chairman, Chris Kemode was clearly excited by the announcement, “We’re delighted to have reached this outcome which will change the ATP landscape,” explained Kermode. “This event will enable us to kick off our season with a major team event, with minimal impact on existing player schedules at the start of the year. This event has huge potential and we now look forward to working together with Tennis Australia in bringing our vision to fruition.”
The announcement is a huge blow to ITF chairman, David Haggerty and Spanish footballer Gerard Pique who have suggested a new similar format for the Davis cup for the end of the year in one venue. What the future holds for the Davis Cup is any guess although we should have a clearer idea next month.
As for the ATP World Team Cup, this is big news as they have wanted to implement this idea for a long time. The rumoured venues for this new World Team Cup includes Perth, Brisbane and Auckland. This will be the first time the ATP have a world team cup since the once they had in Dusseldorf, which lasted from 1978 until 2012.
