Aussie Hero Pat Rafter May Not Continue as Davis Cup Captain

Written by: Bob Larson Tennis on 20th February 2014

Tennis Davis Cup play off Australia press conference

Aussie Hero Pat Rafter May Not Continue as Davis Cup Captain

epa03860728 Captain Patrick Rafter of the Australian Davis Cup team during a press conference in Warsaw, Poland, 10 September 2013. Poland take on Australia in the Davis Cup play off tie starting 13 September. The winning side will secure a place in the elite World Group for 2014. EPA/BARTLOMIEJ ZBOROWSKI POLAND OUT |

The shelf life of Patrick Rafter as Australian Davis Cup captain may be more limited than expected after the former US Open champion and perhaps the most popular man in all of Aussie tennis casts doubts on his willingness to keep doing the job due to the huge travel commitment.

After his side was beaten 5-0 by France in first-round play this month, the 41-year-old has hinted that he is thinking of moving on, perhaps as early as the end of 2015. “I really enjoy it but because I’ve got a young family, I don’t like being away too much. That’s one real drawback for me,” he told the AAP. “That part of it is really hard. I do struggle with that a bit.

“I said I’ll assess it every couple of years and I’ve done three years. I see myself here for the next couple of years but then again the players might not. That is a really important relationship and if they don’t get me and they’re the future, I’m not the man either.”

Any change in the captaincy might also coincide with a changing of the guard in the tennis ranks, with Lleyton Hewitt turning 33 next week and teenagers Nick Kyrgios and Thanasi Kokkinakis hoping to step up as the next tennis generation given the apparent failure of Bernard Tomic, now out after hip surgery.

Rafter said he would need to time his exit. “It would be good to leave at the right time, when everything’s going really well.”

Topics: 10sballs, Bernard Tomic, Davis Cup, Nick Kyrgios, Pat Rafter, Sports, Tennis, Tennis News, Thanasi Kokkinakis, US Open