The small audience present at the AO Arena in Manchester, home of group B of the Davis Cup qualifiers that began this week, has caused friction in the networks between Stan Wawrinka, Swiss tennis player, and Gerard Piqué, former soccer player and promoter of the new competition format.
Switzerland debuted against Switzerland on Tuesday with a resounding 3-0 defeat. Wawrinka lost her singles match against Ugo Umbert and also the doubles match partnering with Marc-Andrea Huesler. And all, with only a few spectators in the stands, which ended up irritating the always irascible Swiss tennis player, winner of three Grand Slam tournaments.
Wawrinka posted a video on Twitter (X) in which you could perfectly see the small crowd that gathered at the AO Arena to follow the competition. Images that she accompanied with an ironic “Thank you Gerard Piqué and ITF (International Tennis Federation).”
The Swiss hinted that the former Barça soccer player and president of Kosmos, the company that until last year organized the Davis Cup and promoted a revolutionary change in the competition format, was one of those responsible for the lack of public success.
Piqué’s response, also on Twitter, was immediate. “Last year’s attendance during the group stage. You can compare it yourself, Wawrinka. We no longer organize it, ask the ITF,” he wrote along with the number of spectators: 113,268.
The Swiss tennis player entered the rag and responded again, ensuring that after a “bad day” on the court after losing to France Piqué “at least” had made him laugh. In turn, Wawrinka wondered why the agreement that was supposed to last 25 years had been broken after 5 years if everything was so successful.
The last chapter, which closed this discussion on a good note, was written by Piqué, ensuring that he did not know that and that we will have to wait for what a judge decides, since the agreement is in court.
“Good luck for the rest of the week,” concluded the former soccer player. If the phrase contained a degree of irony, you will have to ask him.
