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Davis Cup committee chair Mark Woodforde wasn't happy with how Stan Wawrinka decided to voice his displeasure with the current format of the Davis Cup. Last week, Switzerland competed in Group B of the Davis Cup Finals group stage in Manchester.
During Switzerland's tie with France, Wawrinka - who has been a vocal critic of the current Davis Cup format - filmed the empty stands and posted it on his social media. Also, Wawrinka said "some Challenger tournaments hosted more people and had a better atmosphere." "It's in the minority some of those voices, some of them are politically motivated, which is unnecessary.
Stan created a bit of a furore by filming the stands. We're always welcome to having feedback, it's unfortunate he did it in such a public way," Woodforde said.
Woodforde responds to Wawrinka
During the Switzerland and France tie, there weren't many spectators in the crowd.
But a few days later when Switzerland met Great Britain and Wawrinka faced Cameron Norrie in Manchester, it was a different story. However, Wawrinka suggests having good crowd in certain matchups isn't the solution. "We see the difference between today and three days ago – it’s not normal.
I played some Challenger tournaments this year and there were way more people and a way better atmosphere than when we played France. You have to try new things, that’s for sure, but it’s been quite a clear disaster.
This company, they finish a 25-year deal after five years so that means something is wrong. And the people who took this decision are still deciding for the future of Davis Cup," Wawrinka told The Independent. Meanwhile, Woodforde simply said the format was changed a couple of years ago because the old format wasn't working properly. "We're fully aware that some players will say, 'Why don't we go back to that home-and-away format?' That format was not working. That's why the change came about. The old format was killing the Davis Cup," Woodforde said.