Dubai: The Dubai Duty Free Men’s Open two-time runner-up Tomas Berdych has made himself unavailable for the Czech Republic’s crucial Davis Cup quarter-finals against Japan in the first week of April.
Berdych and teammate Radek Stepanek were crucial in the Czech Republic’s two crowns in as many years. The Czechs won against Serbia in 2013 after having defeated Spain a year earlier.
However, Berdych has maintained that the annual competition for nations be played once every two years as the current format was destroying the tournament. With some of the top players refusing to make themselves available for national duty, it is players like Berdych who have to make adjustments and sacrifices to their personal schedules.
“In my last two years, I missed eight weeks for Davis Cup,” the world No 6 had said last week while pressing for the event to be held biennially. “You are dead to play a tournament or even prepare yourself. I think it would make sense and the players would really like to play if the Davis Cup was every two years.
“So my decision for the quarter-final [against Japan in Tokyo] is that I will not play, and I will definitely use the time for myself.”
Defending their crown, the Czech Republic had to dig in deep to get the better of the Netherlands 3-2 in their World Group opener in the first weekend of February and set up a meeting against Japan, who were surprise 4-1 winners against Canada.
“And really, if you want to chase the top guys and they don’t spend all the time playing Davis Cup, you will find out that you are missing a lot of weeks, which cost you a lot of energy, and in that run and chase of those top guys you are missing something.
“So I want to use those weeks for me. So that’s why I make this decision that I help my country to win the first round, and that’s it for this year.”