David Haggerty, ITF President: "We've always wanted to balance the tradition of Davis Cup with the innovation of the Final 8".
The 2024 Davis Cup has delivered its verdict. After a week of fierce battle between the last eight teams in the running, Italy finally retained its title at the expense of the Netherlands, finalists for the first time.
Led by Jannik Sinner, the Squadra Azzurra never wavered, becoming the first team to retain its title since the Czech Republic in 2013.
ITF President David Haggerty spoke about the Davis Cup format and hopes to make decisions to ensure that tennis continues to develop.
"It's very special to hold the Billie Jean King Cup and the Davis Cup in the same place.
In the Davis Cup, we welcomed 65,000 spectators throughout the week, compared with 60,000 last year," he told Marca.
ITF president wants to maintain Davis Cup Final 8
Particularly satisfied with the past week, Haggerty wants to keep the Final 8 format, even though the Davis Cup format will change in 2025.
"We want to make sure the fans have an enjoyable experience. It will be the same for the players and their health.
We're happy with the Final 8 format and we think it's very attractive to have all eight teams fighting it out in the final.
We're listening to the players and the countries. We've always wanted to balance the tradition of the Davis Cup with the innovation of the Final 8.
Next year, the September round will be a two-legged affair," he concluded.
