Roger Federer and the Laver Cup have been heavily criticised by one of his former rivals.
The seventh edition of the unique team event proved to be a success as Team Europe clinched a last-gasp 13-11 win over Team World despite trailing for the majority of the final day.
The Swiss Maestro was in Berlin, Germany for the entire weekend as he witnessed the pulsating action from the Uber Arena.
Europe’s captain Bjorn signed off from his duties with his fifth win, while McEnroe just fell short of ending his time as Team World’s captain with a third success title.
While many enjoyed the latest edition of the Laver Cup, the 2014 French Open doubles winner Julien Benneteau was not one of those people.
What did Julien Benneteau say about Roger Federer and the Laver Cup?
The Laver Cup is certainly one of the most unique events on the ATP Tour. It allows players to communicate with each other in a way that is not often seen in the usual solo events on the circuit.
It also provides players with the opportunity to seek advice from the captains who are legends of the game, in addition to the icons of the game and their teammates.
But Benneteau appeared on the Grandes Gueules du Sport podcast and explained everything he dislikes about the Laver Cup, and claimed the players only participate for the money.
“There is no emotion. When you win even an ATP 250, there is a sporting value,” he said, before criticising Roger Federer and his agent and Laver Cup co-founder Tony Godsick.
“The Laver Cup has no sporting value because the selection is done at the whim of Federer and [Tony] Godsick, there is no sporting criteria. The Ryder Cup, there are six players qualified thanks to their results and six others chosen by their captain.
“But these are sporting choices, not according to who you are represented on the ATP circuit, by which agency you are managed. [Alejandro] Tabilo in the world selection, is he the best? There is no sporting criteria.
“[Frances] Tiafoe and [Taylor] Fritz are not going to play the Davis Cup in China because there is no money but they are going to play the Laver Cup because they are taking a huge cheque. The players are only participating because the cheque is huge.”
What are Roger Federer’s plans for the Laver Cup moving forward?
Federer competed in the Laver Cup as a player on four occasions and was a winner three different times.
The 20-time Grand Slam champion has now watched the last two editions of the Laver Cup as a retired player after ending his career at the 2022 event and London’s O2 Arena.
As he enjoys watching the world’s best players come together in a way not seen anywhere else on the ATP Tour, Federer is keen to grow the Laver Cup product over the next 10 years and did not rule out the possibility of a women’s version.
“You have options to say maybe we will do two years in Berlin or three years, instead of jumping from one to the next,” Federer told Bloomberg TV’s YouTube channel. “I don’t know, could we play Grand Slam venues?
“Could there be a Laver Cup for women as well? But the concern at the moment is to make sure we have a really good product with the Laver Cup.”
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