Tennis: ATP has presented the team competition of the ATP Cup from 2020

London (APA) – After the reform of the Davis Cup and months of substantive discussions, ATP launched Thursday its new, sometimes controversial, competition in the O2 stadium in London. Starting in January 2020, the ATP Cup will be held annually in three Australian cities, with 750 ATP points and 15 million US dollars in ten days.

Twenty-four nations compete in six groups of four for a total of eight places in the quarter-finals, and then continue in the playoffs with the quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals. Up to five players can be named in each team, each international match consisting of two singles and one double. The main criterion for qualification is the ranking of the best placed player in each country.

There is no obligation to start, but during the presentation in a cinema of the O2 Arena, many voices of players were heard, which fully supports the competition. ATP, led by Chris Kermode and Australian Open Tournament Director Craig Tiley, has worked closely on the development of the event over the last four and a half years, which means a revival of the former Team World Cup in Düsseldorf (1978-2012), but much larger. is.

"We want men's tennis to continue to grow and expand our reach for fans," Kermode said. "We want to start the ATP circuit with an absolute highlight."

Moreover, the ATP has also provided a new logo and canceled the "World Tour": the following year will start with the ATP Cup, the race of the ATP Tour and will complete with the finals of the ATP.

Craig Tiley, who also organizes the Laver Cup, sees enough space for even three team competitions, including the traditional Davis Cup. The fact that there are only six weeks left between the current date of the new Davis Cup final in November and the ATP Cup is not frozen. But real solutions were not mentioned Thursday, but remained unclear with general phrases.

The players are certainly excited. "I like the fact that this is an ATP event, on the part of the players, and that we get ranking points.This is the best way to start the season.We play more than 90% of our solo time, it brings us together as a nation, and I will be very proud to be able to represent my country, "said the First Novak Djokovic World Ranking.

The tournament schedule will be scrambled early in the year. There will be more Hopman Cup and some Australian tournaments will merge into ATP Cup. The three Australian cities will be announced later this year, according to Tiley.