The International Tennis Federation has defended its Davis Cup competition following a proposal by leading men's players for a World Cup-style tournament.
Serbian player Novak Djokovic, who is on the ATP Player Council along with Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal, said ``we proposed it ... but it's all fresh and it's all ideas.''
The World Cup would include 32 teams and feature several rule changes, including mandatory substitutions during a match.
``This proposal, also shown to the ITF, has some interesting elements and, of course, timely branding, given the current worldwide fascination with the 2010 FIFA World Cup. It also has many challenges that must be faced if it is to succeed,'' the ITF said in a statement. ``Everyone is in agreement that a nation vs. nation format is very attractive, something Davis Cup has recognized for over a century, and only time will tell if a new competition can earn a regular place in the tennis calendar.''
The Davis Cup has been in existence for 110 years and pits countries against each other over several weekends during the tennis season. Many top players skip Davis Cup weekends to take time off during the packed tennis calendar.
The World Cup would likely be a 10-day biennial tournament played at a single venue.
Djokovic said discussions were only at a very preliminary stage and he expected dialogue among players, player representatives and tournament organizers to continue at the Australian Open in Melbourne, which starts Monday.
``The main point is that we are trying to make the sport improve and get better,'' Djokovic said. ``The players are the ones who are making the show and their opinions have to be greatly considered.
``We will have some talks here in Australia that will be crucial, I think, for upcoming years and ... the only thing I can say is that I'm happy that all the top players are willing to participate in these talks and try to contribute and fight for their own right.''
The already crowded schedule would make any change to the tour difficult, he said.
``We still don't know whether the idea is going to pass because there's many consequences that could be,'' he said. ``Considering the current schedule that we have right now, which is very busy, something will be sacrificed. What periods, what tournaments, what country, we still don't know.''
Besides each team being required to use at least two players per five-set match, the World Cup would also feature a clock giving players a maximum 25 seconds between points and tiebreakers would be won by the first team to five, according to The Times of London. Also, the 32 teams would be split into eight groups of four, with the top two in each advancing to the knockout rounds.
British player Andy Murray seemed to be intrigued by the proposal.
``I am a great fan of the Davis Cup, but if a decision was taken to drop it, or something else could change in the calendar, then a World Cup is a fascinating idea,'' Murray told The Times of London newspaper.
Croatia's Ivan Ljubicic, who reached a career-high No. 3 ranking and has been a spokesman for players in the past, said players still wanted to represent their countries but committing to Davis Cup made that difficult.
``Our sport is going forward, so you have to change something about it,'' he told reporters at an Australian Open tuneup event at Kooyong. ``Maybe (Davis Cup) was perfect 20 or 30 years ago but now it is really too much for us, the best of five sets three days in a row and for sure, the week after you can't play, the week before you can't play, so it takes a lot of your time.''
The Davis Cup has weathered other major changes in the game, including the move to professionalism in 1968 and the advent of the men's ATP tour.
``While Davis Cup has evolved and modernized over the years, it has not lost its intrinsic values based around the home-and-away format that attracts great support from fans, sponsors, television and the players themselves who enjoy playing in front of their home country fans,'' the ITF said.
The ITF also noted that it has a five-year contract with the ATP World Tour ``guaranteeing dates and ranking points.''
The concept is being pitched by gemba, a Melbourne-based marketing and sponsorship firm. Spokesman James Hird was traveling to Los Angeles and unavailable for comment, the company said.
The idea has been shown to organizers of three of the four tennis Grand Slam events.
Australian Open tournament director Craig Tiley told The Times he thought the concept was innovative and would help grow participation in the sport.
Tiley was not immediately available for further comment on Thursday, four days ahead of the season's first major.
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AP Sports Writer John Pye in Melbourne, Australia contributed to this report.
