Tennis Podcast: What to expect from the Davis Cup Finals

Almost two years have passed since Gerard Pique and his newly-formed investment group Kosmos pledged to pump in $3bn over a 25-year period to transform the Davis Cup, tennis’ oldest team competition, into a World Cup style event with 18 of the best teams gathered in Madrid. Since then there has been plenty of debate, with some lamenting the loss of 119 years of tradition, and others excited about the fresh start.

On The Tennis Podcast, David Law and Matt Roberts discuss what we can expect. How many of the top players are competing? In what way does the new format place a greater emphasis on doubles? Will a fervent atmosphere be created? And how quick should we be to judge whether the event is a success or not?

Looking ahead to the actual tennis, why has Daniil Medvedev withdrawn? Is Novak Djokovic fully fit to compete? And why have defending champions Croatia been forced to change their captain at the last minute?

Elsewhere, Law chats to Catherine Whitaker about Stefanos Tsitsipas’ thrilling win over Dominic Thiem at the ATP Finals. Where was the match won and lost? What is it about Tsitsipas that makes fans fall in love with him? How confident can we be that both players will deliver more of the same next season? And what made this edition of the ATP Finals so memorable?

The Tennis Podcast is produced weekly throughout the year, daily during the Grand Slam tournaments, the WTA and ATP Finals, and the Fed Cup and Davis Cup Finals.

This week's Tennis Podcast is sponsored by the Davis Cup by Rakuten Madrid Finals, which takes place 18-24 November. Ticket details - https://www.daviscupfinals. com/ticketing/

How to listen to The Tennis Podcast:

Listen - http://po.st/TP_614

Download – http://po.st/TP_614Download

iTunes - http://po.st/TP_614Apple