I found this article written a day after my chapter regarding Andy Murray and the rather tough decision that he has to make. It backs up my chapter and gives a nice little serve to the ATP. Note the TRANSLATION at the bottom of the page, brilliant.
The article was written courtesy of The Bleacher Report, Sports Journalists and bloggers who cover all things relating to all sports. Well written Jeremy Eckstein....
Why the ATP Should Stay Out of Andy Murray's Davis Cup Decision
By Jeremy Eckstein ,
Andy Murray has been mowing through the Davis Cup competition, but he may find a bigger battle against the long arm of the ATP.
Fresh off his heroics to guide Great Britain past Australia in the September semifinals, Murray will be in a quandary before he leads his team in their November 27-29 clash in Ghent, Belgium.
The first part of the equation is that Murray is required by ATP guidelines to play in London’s lucrative World Tour Finals, which end on November 22.
The year-end showcase at the O2 Arena, London, is played on fast indoors hard courts, and Murray as the No. 3 player and popular UK native is the most-important attraction (Yes, Murray is a commodity not a person in this vein) next to Roger Federer.
Murray recently entertained the idea of skipping the WTF event in order to rest his body and acclimate his game and footing to Belgium’s selection of a clay-court surface.
He said as much on BBC Radio 5 Live (h/t Simon Bragg of The Telegraph) after his victory over Bernard Tomic:
The O2 would obviously be a question mark for me if we were playing on the clay. I would go and train and prepare on the clay to get ready for the final.
You saw last year with Roger Federer that the matches at the O2 are extremely tough and physically demanding. If you reach the final and play on the Sunday you also need to take time off - you can't just play five matches against the best players in the world and then not take any days off.
Perhaps Murray erred by not keeping his cards closer to his vest. ATP president Chris Kermode quickly fired a warning shot across Murray’s bow, according to the AP, via Tennis.com:
All players who qualify, unless injured, are required to compete in the event. Andy Murray has had a fantastic season and earned his place among the world's top eight players to compete at the season finale. We are aware of the comments made after the Davis Cup tie in Glasgow, however our expectations are that, if fully fit, Andy would compete in this year's tournament.
Translation: We are the ATP and we own you, Andy Murray. We expect to profit off of your star rather than let you compete for your country and for an event sponsored by our competitor the International Tennis Federation that puts on the Davis Cup events.
Once again, the ATP has asserted its Orwellian authority without regarding the best interests of the players.
That’s wrong and the system needs to change. Players must be allowed to have more autonomy with their own schedules and choices.
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