"The words of ex-players make me laugh" - Jannik Sinner's former coach jumps to Italian and Carlos Alcaraz's defense after Davis Cup controversy
Jannik Sinner and Carlos Alcaraz have found support in the Italian's former coach Riccardo Piatti, who has jumped to the duo's defense after they drew criticism for not participating in the Davis Cup group stage matches this year.
In Alcaraz's absence, the Spanish squad fell out of the tournament and could not secure passage into the knockout stages of the Finals. Italy, however, have qualified for the quarterfinals even though Sinner opted to take a break.
Lorenzo Musetti, Lorenzo Sonego and Matteo Arnaldi turned out to be the unlikely heroes for their nation, as they earned wins over the Swedish and Chilean contingent after their opening rubber loss to the Canadians.
Speaking to Corriere dello Sport in a recent interview, Piatti commented on the situation, stating that he did not understand why there was so much controversy about who played at the event.
The renowned tennis coach, who has also coached the likes of Novak Djokovic and Milos Raonic in the past, went as far as to say that he could only laugh at the comments made by ex-players on the matter, seeing as they could not even imagine the pace at which the sport is played today.
"I don't understand the controversy over who plays in Davis, the important thing is to move forward. Even the words of ex-players who cannot put themselves in the shoes of those who play at the pace of today's tennis, where there is less time to improve and more risk of injury, make me laugh," Piatti said.
Riccardo Piatti emphasized that it was understandable that Sinner and Alcaraz skipped the Davis Cup for their own survival, adding that there will be times in the future where they will be more ready to participate in the tournament.
Even if Jannik Sinner doesn't, for one reason or the other, Team Italy has no reason to be afraid, believes the tennis coach.
"Sinner and Alcaraz skipped Davis because they were thinking about their survival, not because they were thinking about Asia, it's a very different thing. There will be times in their careers where they feel ready to play Davis and others where they won't. For me, Italy shouldn't be afraid because it has a team with many players," Piatti said.
Jannik Sinner's former coach Riccardo Piatti: "This is the danger of tennis today, the kids don't have periods of improvement"
Riccardo Piatti also commented on the evolution of tennis over the years, pointing out how players play fewer tournaments today than they did in the past. At the same time, he reckons stars in the past had periods of inactivity where they had the luxury to not think about the sport for a while, something that is not afforded to those in the game today.
As a result, Piatti is of the opinion that kids today are at risk of stagnating, or even worse, becoming more injury-prone compared to the players of the past.
"In the 90s they also participated in 30 tournaments, now fewer are played but over the course of almost twelve months. The breaks were important because a player would stop at the end of October and know that he wouldn't think about tennis for two months," Piatti said.
"Now it's more difficult because you have to find these moments during the season, but if you go on holiday after Wimbledon you already have the US Open in your head. This is the danger of tennis today, the kids don't have periods of improvement and instead the danger of falling into injuries is greater," he added.