A major Davis Cup revamp that would condense the annual global tournament into an 18-team, week-long event will be voted upon today with major tennis leaders divided over the proposal.
The International Tennis Federation annual meeting in Orlando will see about 120 delegates decide the fate of the 118-year-old men's team competition with two-thirds majority support needed to approve the measure, which is backed by federation president David Haggerty.
Kosmos, a group led and founded by Barcelona football star Gerard Pique and backed by Japanese billionaire Hiroshi Mikitani, has vowed USD 3 billion over 25 years to support the new event.
Haggerty vows more money, about USD 25 million, will go to national tennis associations to invest in grassroots level support.
"The money that we make will be put back to the nations for their development programs and the future of tennis," Haggerty said.
But opponents of the plan include Tennis Australia and Britain's Lawn Tennis Association (LTA).
"There are a lot of people, a lot of current and former players, who are frustrated by it and see this as a money grab," Aussie Davis Cup captain Lleyton Hewitt said.
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