Deepak Jain>Wed, Jan 20 10 04:29 PM
Melbourne, Jan 20 (DPA) American Andy Roddick offered no apologies Wednesday for skipping the Davis Cup campaign this season.
'I'll miss it, for sure,' the seventh seed said after reaching the third round of the Australian Open. 'It's been a big part of my career so far. I don't know if I've shut the door on as far as forever goes.'
Roddick said he made the decision late in 2009 in the midst of a recovery from injuring his knee in Shanghai, which cut his season short.
'We made the decision late last year,' said last year's Wimbledon. 'My knee was still hurt. We [he and coach Larry Stefanki] didn't think it was smart to be switching surfaces from hard to clay to hard, time zones, all that.'
The American said he's not trying to hurt his team's chances - they face Serbia away in March - but would not be changing his mind.
'I never wanted to be one of these guys who played when it was convenient,' he said. 'I feel like if you commit at the beginning of the year, then you commit. Last thing I'd want to do is have those guys go battle early in the year, then me waltz in and try to play later in the year when they've been the ones to get the team to that point.'
But Roddick said the length of the current ATP season does get on his nerves with the former number one as keen as his rivals for some kind of rational change.
He said he's all in favour of reducing the Davis Cup's annual frequency.
'We've been talking about adjustments for a long time,' he said. 'Bottom line is, until the ITF [International Tennis Federation] steps up and actually says, 'This might be better for our [Davis Cup] event,' then it's really a moot point.'
While he's not holding his breath, the American said he is optimistic that some kind of eventual compromise could be reached.
Source: Web Search
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