Croatia and France to Face Off in Davis Cup Final
In the final rendition of the traditional Davis Cup format, 2016 finalists Croatia will face a tough task against defending champions France in their quest to win their second Davis Cup title. France breezed past a weakened Spain side, completing their victory on Saturday after winning the doubles rubber. Croatia had a much tougher time of things, with their number two Borna Coric needing five sets in the deciding rubber to get past Frances Tiafoe and to seal their victory. This came after Marin Cilic was upset by Sam Querrey in the fourth rubber.
France and Croatia will play the final in November, and will be the last nations to compete in the Davis Cup before it is changed into a World Cup style event taking place at the end of the tennis year, instead of the current format which is spaced out over the entire tennis season. The idea behind this is to shorten the tennis year by taking up fewer weekends for Davis Cup matches to be held. However, many big names in tennis have spoken out against this change, due to the history that comes with the current format. The changes were suggested by footballer Gerard Pique, which is seen by many as a unwelcome interference in a sport that does not concern the Spaniard.
Either way, the changes have now been approved by the ITF, and the format will change. The good news for Great Britain is that they will be seeded in next year’s competition after their 3-1 triumph over Uzbekistan, a win that was sealed by Cameron Norrie’s comprehensive 6-2 6-2 6-0 victory over Sanjar Fayziev. We can only hope that Great Britain can field a full-strength side that can really challenge next year.