[ad_1]
Johannesburg – Kevin Anderson reaching the singles final of Wimbledon sparked South African nationalist fervor.
However, it should be noted that the adoration accorded to Anderson as South African flag bearer may, in some respects, be misplaced.
A patriot is someone who shows strong support and dedication to his country. 19659002] Anderson largely avoided the opportunity to represent South Africa at the Davis Cup on the grounds that this national service would hinder his career of the Tennis Players Association (ATP).
ATP matches pay well, and are worth the time and the effort of Anderson, but the Davis Cup, in which the only reward is the honor and the satisfaction of representing and of give back to your country, just does not fit the bill.
Anderson could at any time change allegiance United States where he resides since 2005, but he told Wimbledon that he would "play under the South African flag for the rest of my career" .
Up to a certain point, it is understandable that Anderson can not be bothered to travel the long distance from Florida, where he lives in the United States, for the duty of the Davis Cup in South Africa. However, if he made the effort to support the South African Davis Cup team, he would certainly pay tribute to the South African public. His effective boycott since 2011 when representing his country at the event is rare in modern tennis.
There is also the feeling that Anderson may have had a bad relationship with the local body, Tennis SA (TSA), and this is perhaps the main reason he chose to drop the tournament from his schedule.
All the big stars of the men's ATP circuit contributed to the success of their Davis Cup teams. Switzerland's Roger Federer, Spaniard Rafael Nadal, Serbian Novak Djokovic and Britain's Andy Murray played an important role in helping their countries win the Davis Cup
If the biggest stars of ATP can integrate the Davis Cup, Anderson can the same? The Argentine Juan Martín del Potro and the Australian Bernard Tomic are two other great players of the ATP who have excluded from the Davis Cup
In 2014, Del Potro refused to play the Cup Davis because of differences of opinion with the Argentine Tennis Association. Last year, he stated that it was more important for him "to be in good health and not to suffer any injuries to the wrist or hip," according to the Tennis World website USA. Tomic has been known to be unsportsmanlike, play games unenthusiastically or even give up, and his erratic nature has seen him on the blacklist of the Australian Davis Cup performance
Raven Klaasen, the best doubles player of South Africa who made the Wimbledon final. Lloyd Harris, South Africa's second highest ranked player on the ATP men's circuit, also regularly participated in the Davis Cup.
Wayne Ferreira, the best South African single player men before the emergence of Anderson, was a loyal supporter of the local Davis Cup team.
Anderson can not argue that he does not have the financial means to travel to South Africa from anywhere in the world. His ATP profile shows his career profits at $ 13.1 million (176 million rand), including nearly $ 2.9 million this year.
TSA tried to find a sponsor to pay the travel and participation costs for the Davis Cup. "The sad reality is that the current Davis Cup schedule and format would require me to make significant sacrifices in terms of travel, training, rehabilitation, and preparation for major tournaments," he said. Mr. Anderson in a blog.
The South African Davis Cup team could do with the participation of Anderson, who is falling to 42 of 132 teams in the Davis Cup standings.
Is not it time for Anderson to support the Davis Cup? team now that it is No 5 in the world?
Source link
