Despite the breach of contract between the IITF and the Kosmos group, the one who is also the president of Swiss Tennis does not regret anything.
“We organized 36 Davis Cup matches last weekend. I only had positive feedback, welcomes René Stammbach. Financially, 6 million dollars were redistributed to the federations and the prize money for the players amounted to 6.8 million dollars before the 2018 reform. Today, we pay 10 million to the federations and 16 million to the players.
According to René Stammbach, these amounts will still be in place for 2023 despite the withdrawal of Kosmos. “Insurance has been finalized to cover the prize money for 2023, he specifies. As for that of 2022, it will be settled in the coming weeks. Players who have not yet received their money will be compensated.
“Reinventing” yourself in 2024
René Stammbach is however fully aware that the Davis Cup will have to “reinvent itself” next year to face the withdrawal of the Kosmos group of Gerard Piqué who had signed up for a 25-year contract amounting to 3 billion euros. dollars. “The ITF will look into this issue in March. We have to look for solutions,” he said.
The president of Swiss Tennis knows that the Grand Slam tournaments want to restore the Davis Cup to its former glory. “I have taken note of the criticisms made by Gilles Moretton, the president of the French Federation. But what are the proposals put forward by the Grand Slam tournaments? I don’t see anything coming!”
The enthusiasm aroused by the “qualifiers” last weekend – we played to sold-out crowds in Trier for the Germany-Switzerland match – reminded us how much the public could appreciate these home matches which have always done a lot for the promotion tennis.
“The ideal would be to play the round of 16 and the quarter-finals on a + dry + match as we did until 2018 and then organize a Final 4”, pleads for his part Marc Rosset. Davis Cup finalist in 1992 during a memorable campaign, the Genevan wants to believe that the event he cherishes still has a future.
Victime du Big Three
“The Davis Cup was sort of the victim of the fabulous successes of the Big Three. Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic played it at the start of their careers before chasing the record for Grand Slam titles,” notes Marc Rosset.
“You can understand that the Davis Cup, which they all three won, was no longer a primary objective for them. But today, we no longer have players capable of winning 20 Grand Slam titles. a Stefanos Tstsipas, a Carlos Alcaraz, an Alexander Zverev, a Roger Auger-Aliassime, a Jannik Sinner, the Davis Cup is a must. I am sure of it”, he slips.
In Trier in his capacity as a consultant for RTS, the Genevan was able to see that the magic of the Davis Cup still operates for the Swiss team. At 37 years old, Stan Wawrinka fought like a lion to give him the point of victory. Transcended by the event, Marc-Andrea Hüsler released the match of his life to beat Alexander Zverev. As for Dominic Stricker, he had stars in his eyes after his double with Stan Wawrinka despite the bitterness of the defeat.
“Believe me, playing a Davis Cup match in a sold-out stadium alongside a three-time Grand Slam winner was an extraordinary experience. I want more,” said the Bernese. René Stammbach has undoubtedly received the message from the man who is today the greatest hope of his federation. He honestly has no right to disappoint him.
