Kevin Anderson is unaffordable for Tennis South Africa – Tennis News
World number 35, Kevin Anderson, refused to play in the Davis Cup tie against the Canadian team last week and that assisted his country from failing to qualify for the top tier of the global team competition. South Africa has not
been able to make in into the elite list of the countries that play for the title of Davis Cup for the fourth consecutive year. Their best ranked player was out of play due to some conflict in personal negotiations that couldn’t lure Anderson to play for his
country.
Canadian team was pretty strong and there is no doubt that the addition of the 26-year-old Anderson would have changed the result but the scenario and score line could have been different. Some respect might have been restored
by the Anderson courtesy an upset against the 21-year-old Canadian superstar, Milos Raonic, who is in emphatic run of form.
Tennis South African is hoping against the hope to bring back their supreme icon back into the team of Davis Cup but they have been found complaining about the sky-rocketing demands of Anderson that keeps doesn’t allow them to
adjust a key player into the team.
The Chief Executive of Tennis South Africa, Ian Smith stated, “It depends on his demands. Other players are playing (Davis Cup) for nothing, and though we appreciate what he has done for SA tennis, Kevin needs to understand where
SA sport in general stands with regards to funding and sponsorship."
He further added, “We have always tried to get Kevin to play Davis Cup. Last year we paid him a sizable amount of money to play two ties. Each time we play a Davis Cup tie overseas we cover flights and accommodation, and we also
have a fulltime physiotherapist with the team. Last year, when Kevin was injured in Potchefstroom, we still paid him.”
The demands of Anderson rose this year and that aggravated the officials as well. They couldn’t afford to play him in the team and that led to a disastrous outcome. However, they are looking forward to contact the 35th
ranked superstar who doesn’t seem to lower the demands at the moment. On the other hand, Anderson stated on his official website that he didn’t take part in the Davis Cup due to the fear of injury and decrease in the overall income.
Smith is open to discussions and can negotiate a bit lower wage for Anderson but the player is not ready to compromise on that at the moment. However, nothing is for sure for the future endeavours.
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