John Millman lambasts Gerard Pique over the Davis Cup format following the retired footballer’s comments on needing changes to appeal to young audience

Australian tennis player John Millman took to his official Twitter handle to support the changes made in the Davis Cup format to make it more interesting and more appealing to the younger audience. For context, the post was shared in response to the ESPN story covering Barcelona star Gerard Pique. According to ESPN FC, the Spanish football star thinks that football requires some changes which can help appeal to younger audiences.

For those uninitiated, Davis Cup is one of the most prestigious competitions in the world. It was started way back in 1900. Essentially, The best male tennis players play under the national flag and represent their national team in the competition. It is also known as the “World Cup of Tennis”.

It does have home and away though.
And it wasn't change for the purpose of attracting young people.
But you know all this, your purpose here is not to point facts obviously..

— Latso (@latso2001) November 10, 2022

“Ahhhhh… that’s why our sport’s oldest team competition now has a best of three format, no home and away matches and tie done and dusted in 5 hours. Unfortunately haven’t seen the younger generation flock into the neutral venue just yet but it sure is seductive..!” his caption read.

It does have home and away though.
And it wasn't change for the purpose of attracting young people.
But you know all this, your purpose here is not to point facts obviously..

— Latso (@latso2001) November 10, 2022

Gerard Pique thinks football needs to change if it's going to appeal to a younger audience ? pic.twitter.com/2uGLWbWwpu

— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) November 10, 2022

However, how successful these measures would be in making the beautiful game more enticing to the younger lot is yet to be seen. We also have to agree with the Australian that the changes made in the Davis Cup competition have not amounted to greater traction for the sport.

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Can Davis Cup regain its popularity?

Davis Cup is a 122-year-old competition. Winning the Davis Cup title is the dream of every male player. This tournament is organized by the International Tennis Federation (ITF). The USA has won the tournament 32 times, which is the maximum number of times. Russia is the defending champion.

The Four Grand Slams-the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon and the US Open, and the Davis Cup are the highest watchable tennis events in the sports calendar. However, the tennis event is slowly losing its appeal.

With the introduction of the ATP Finals and the WTA Finals tournament, the popularity of the Davis Cup’s appeal eroded further. Also, the introduction of the ATP Cup, Hopman Cup, and the United Cup made it difficult for tennis players to maintain their fitness levels and schedule their availability for international events.

However, in the latter half of this year, some positive news came for the Davis Cup. The ATP and ITF have joined hands to revive the Davis Cup. Some rules were also changed so that more and more people can connect with the event. The two bodies will also promote the competition to make it a grand success.

As expected, the post instantly went viral, eliciting a plethora of reactions online. Several viewers and Twitter users chimed in to provide their take on the entire matter. Sharing a wide spectrum of reactions online, here are a few reactions coming in for you.

This thing that if you're good in a sport you automatically get to be called an expert of anything related to that sport has to end

— Lorenzo Cioffi (@Isniper_Tns) November 10, 2022

You want younger viewers? Change up your coverage so at least 50% of the time it’s with people who played while we’ve been alive rather than having only been commentating the last 30 years and want to tell us how much better your era was.

— Jack (@snarkisreal) November 10, 2022

Maybe a rule change regarding kits? Socks, shoes, compression shorts, and that’s all

— Stephen (@slomo_delpo) November 10, 2022

It looks like Piqué hasn't got the time to watch a football or tennis match, so he doesn't want us to enjoy them either. Envy: new level ?

— Michelangelo Sottili ?️‍??? (@Michelangelo451) November 10, 2022

https://twitter.com/fbaiocchi/status/1590745868948602880

Instead of conforming things that work to the likes of children we should wait until children are of age to understand why things are they way they are and why it works lol. Idk why appealing to children is so important, most of them haven’t got a clue

— Arjun (@arjunaggs) November 10, 2022

We have to recognise that this Pique guy is consistent. The “product” (aka tennis matches, football matches but could be rugby cricket or basketball) must be SHORTER!!
That’s his marketing mantra
It basically need to be compatible with tik tok format

— frenchfan (@frenchfan10) November 10, 2022

It does have home and away though.
And it wasn't change for the purpose of attracting young people.
But you know all this, your purpose here is not to point facts obviously..

— Latso (@latso2001) November 10, 2022

Why did tennis leaders let a football player decide the fate of the oldest and most revered country team competition in tennis? We should retaliate by having John McEnroe change the format of FIFA World Cup!

— RDA (@RDAManOfLeisure) November 10, 2022

This was the "Real" Davis Cup. pic.twitter.com/FBU6RvwaXO

— J. Fred Sidhu (@JFredSidhu) November 10, 2022

It's such a joy that a footballer has so much say in tennis! Yes, it's been a few years, but my views haven't changed! I don't want modern Davis Cup. It means nothing to me. I thought DC was this prized possession in tennis. Well, if GS have 3 set matches one day, don't whinge!

— reelz (@ReelzSg60) November 11, 2022

Gotta give it to Pique. He doesn't discriminate and has equally terrible ideas about football and tennis alike.

— BK (@borris_k) November 11, 2022

Home and away matches were the best! Brought tennis stars to places that don’t have any other tennis competition and produced some classics: France-USA final in ‘91, McEnroe-Wilander in ‘82, Bjorn Born at 17, etc!

— RDA (@RDAManOfLeisure) November 12, 2022

The other prestigious tournament which is played based on the Davis Cup is the Fed Cup (now Billie Jean King Cup). It was introduced in 1972 by the ITF. The best female players in the world play in this tournament under their national flag to represent their national team.

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