Davis Cup final: Nalbandian blasts venue

Argentina’s David Nalbandian furious that the seaside town of Mar del Plata had been selected to stage the Davis Cup final.

The South Americans will be hosting the final for the first time when they tackle Rafael Nadal’s Spain from November 21-23, but Nalbandian, his country’s top player, believes the tie should have been held in Argentina’s second biggest city, Cordoba, his hometown of 1.3 million people.

"It’s a very strange decision. The players and captain and the federation want to play in Cordoba. I don’t know why they chose the other place. Cordoba is better and has more infrastructure.

"Everything looked like we were supposed to play there. There are poor conditions in Mar del Plata. That’s why we chose Cordoba.

"There must be something under the table with Mar del Plata," he suggested.

The final will be played on indoor hard court, a move aimed at negating the clay court talents of world No.1 Nadal, the four-time French Open champion.

It was made after consideration of plans proposed by the Argentine Tennis Association and the site visit reports of Mar del Plata and Cordoba made by International Tennis Federation (ITF) representatives.

"This was one of the most challenging decisions we have made during my more than a decade-long tenure on the Davis Cup Committee," said Juan Margets, who is also executive vice president of the ITF, the body which owns and manages the Davis Cup competition.

"There were many factors to consider including the wishes of the players to play on an indoor hard court, the feasibility of increasing the venue to the 12,000 seat minimum required in the regulations and other factors that contribute to the success of a Davis Cup Final.

"In the end, the Committee unanimously felt that Mar del Plata was the most appropriate venue for the 2008 Final."