Tuesday 16 September 2014 15:22, UK
The Davis Cup is to remain an annual tournament according to tennis' governing body in spite of complaints of an over-crowded schedule for players.
The head of the International Tennis Federation ruled out a biennial cup, in the manner of golf's Ryder Cup, but did concede at a press conference in Dubai on Tuesday that the format of three sets of six games could change eventually.
There have been persistent complaints from some players that the Davis Cup over-burdens them in an already crowded schedule.
Czech Tomas Berdych has twice won the Davis Cup with his country but earlier this year complained about its detrimental effect on his individual career.
He is among those who have called on tennis chiefs to only hold the competition every two years, while other top players have suggested it needs replacing completely.
"We don't agree with this (a biennial event) because the calendar of tennis is annual," said ITF president Francesco Ricci Ricci Bitti. "If you take something away, it's very difficult the year after."
He added that the ITF would insist on two other principles for the cup - that ties be played on a home and away basis and for national associations to select their players to compete.
Ricci Bitti conceded some leading players were suffering from fatigue but said their absence was only highlighted when it was for the Davis Cup, rather than for singles or doubles tournaments.
The Davis Cup remains as popular as ever with the public - a capacity 18,000 crowd roared on Roger Federer on Sunday as he helped Switzerland beat Italy to reach the final of the top team event in men's tennis for the first time since 1992.
The Swiss will play France, who trounced defending champions Czech Republic, in November.
Ricci Bitti, a former player, hinted however that the structure and format of matches could be changed in the future to keep fans interested.
"Tennis is becoming longer in terms of rallies and so the peak of attention both for television and the spectator is at the end of the set," he said.
"It would be better to have five sets at four (games) then three sets at six because you have more peak of attention, but this is just a vision for the future. To change the rules of the game you need the consensus of the players, of many people."
