'Exhibition, not real Davis Cup': Alexander Zverev slams current Davis Cup format
NewsSaturday, 15 November 2025 at 14:47
Alexander Zverev slammed the current Davis Cup format, calling it more of an exhibition than a proper Davis Cup.
The Davis Cup was once one of the most fascinating competitions in tennis. Countries played in front of a packed home arena, with the best-of-five sets format providing great drama every time.
Today, the format is completely different. The eight best countries qualify for the Davis Cup Finals, where they are put into an eight-team draw. All matches are held at the same venue, so only one team has home-field advantage.
That, according to many players and fans, took away the magic of the Davis Cup. Not only that, the Davis Cup Finals are currently the last event in the calendar, which makes it hard for players to compete every year.
For example, Jannik Sinner will not play at this year's Davis Cup Finals, something that drew strong criticism from Italian fans. Carlos Alcaraz, on the other hand, said that he could see the event being held every two years.
Zverev was asked about those comments during his press conference after the last round-robin match at the ATP Finals, and as someone who has openly criticized the current format for years, he didn't hold back in his answer, calling the current Davis Cup an exhibition.
"It's true. I think he's right. The true Davis Cup is the home-and-away ties. For me, if you're in the final of Davis Cup, I'm more than happy to play one more week after the World Tour Finals. But to play quarterfinals, semifinals, finals, I'm not too happy about because it can be a waste of time. If you lose in the semifinals, if you lose in quarterfinals, for me it's a waste of time."
"In a way, the real Davis Cup is the atmosphere. To play against Italy in Italy, it would be a completely different atmosphere than playing Italy in Spain. I played against [Rafael] Nadal in a bullfighting arena. That's for me the real Davis Cup. I always keep my opinion."
"I always said my opinion over the last couple years. I don't think this Davis Cup is the real Davis Cup. It's an exhibition tournament in a way that is called the Davis Cup."
Why will Alexander Zverev play the Davis Cup despite slamming the format?
Many fans might wonder why Zverev would play this tournament despite hating the format so much. During his answer, the German player answered that question as well, without even being asked.
The German Davis Cup team at this year's Davis Cup Finals will consist of Zverev, Jan-Lennard Struff, Yannick Hanfmann, and the doubles team of Kevin Krawietz and Tim Puetz, who played together at the ATP Finals.
Struff is 35, Hanfmann is 34, Krawietz is 33, and Puetz is 37. It's clear that this generation of German tennis is slowly coming to an end, and there's one thing these players never managed to do together, and that's win a Davis Cup.
In fact, Germany last won the Davis Cup in 1993, more than three decades ago, when Michael Stich and Marc-Kevin Goellner teamed up to beat Australia in the final. Zverev wants to help his countrymen win this competition at least once, and since he's the best German player on the ATP Tour right now, he was asked to help, which he will.
"I'll play it now because my teammates and my German colleagues really asked me to play because they feel like everybody's getting older. Struffy [Jan-Lennard Struff] doesn't have many opportunities anymore. The doubles guys don't have many opportunities anymore. I'm playing it just because of that reason. For me, this has nothing to do with Davis Cup."
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