"Follow the money or follow the tradition" says Novak Djokovic about proposed Davis Cup moves

The Davis Cup has already undergone quite a bit of change since Kosmos took over the logistical side of the event and while there are fans of the changes, many former and current tennis players have spoken out against the changes. The most recent news about the event possibly moving to the Middle East for a few years found even more critics than previous changes with some of them quite harsh.

Lleyton Hewitt openly called the move 'selling out' with some players holding similar views. Novak Djokovic was asked about it and he took a very open-minded approach to the question:

“I like the fact that now there are three different countries that are able to host at least group stages. I would say why not more? Why not have six different countries host one group of three teams? We lost that with the change of format, the possibility for many countries in the World Group to host the tie. I think that is something that people have not reacted well to, and I understand. You need a Davis Cup competition for the development of your own national tennis."

Turning his attention to the location of the event Djokovic said:

“Now when it comes to location, whether it's Abu Dhabi or anywhere else, that's something we have to wait and see officially when it comes out and then discuss. Now it's not official yet. There is a lot of interest to bring Davis Cup or any other big tennis competition or sports competition to the Middle East, where economically they're very strong and they can finance the big demands that you have for an organization of such an important event."

He continued:

“Now the question is whether you follow the money, so to say, or you follow the tradition, or you find a balance between the two? That's always the big question on anybody's mind. Some people think we should improve, that we should look forward, that we should progress. Some people think we should stick to what the Davis Cup as a competition or as a format was before."

He closed it off with:

“I'm somewhere in between. I think you need to respect the tradition and the history, and you need to stick to the things that are recognizable that make this competition so important for the sport. At the same time, you need to move forward and find new ways to improve the competition.”