ITF: Israel cannot host Argentina in Davis Cup due to violence
The International Tennis Federation has decided that the Davis Cup playoff tie between Israel and Argentina cannot be held in Israel due to "concerns arising from the military conflict between Israel and Hamas," the committee announced Thursday.
The teams were scheduled to play Sep. 12-14 at Nokia Arena in Tel Aviv.
Israel has five days to nominate a neutral venue and would still be considered the home team. If not, the Davis Cup Committee will decide whether to play the tie on neutral ground or in Argentina.
The Davis Cup committee also discussed the possibility of moving Ukraine vs. Belgium, which is scheduled to be played at the Palace of Sports in Kiev, but ultimately decided not to make a change.
Davis Cup Committee Chairman Juan Margets:
“After long deliberation, the Committee was convinced that Kiev would provide a safe environment for the tie with Belgium and agreed for it to go ahead as scheduled. The decision on Israel versus Argentina was more problematic for the Committee because the situation in Israel is very fluid at the moment and yet security in Israel is of an exceptionally high standard."
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- Sarah Barshop
