Federer and Djokovic to play doubles at Laver Cup
Roger Federer and Novak Djokovic, long-time rivals for the top prizes in tennis, will be teaming up as a doubles pair for Team Europe during the Laver Cup. Bjorn Borg will be the captain of Team Europe while Team World will be captained by John McEnroe. This will be Djokovic's debut in this three-day exhibition tournament. Further details follow.
What is the points format of Laver Cup?
Matches are played as best-of-three with a 10-point tiebreaker if scores are level. Day 1 matches are one point each, two on Day 2 and three on Day 3. The final (match 9) is scheduled on Sunday, and if there is a straight winner, an exhibition match would be played. Otherwise, a doubles set with a tie-breaker will be played to decide the winner.
Djokovic excited on teaming up with Federer
Djokovic could not participate in the tournament last year as he had recently became a father. Further, he was also suffering from injuries. On his comeback trail, the Serb has already bagged the Wimbledon and US Open. Djokovic now says he is ready and excited to team up with Federer after being at the opposite side of the court for so many years.
Federer had teamed up with Rafael Nadal last term
While Djokovic did not play in this tournament last term, Rafael Nadal had teamed up with Roger Federer as a part of Team Europe. With 37 Grand Slam titles between them, the pair featured in a doubles match against Jack Sock and Sam Querrey. With a score-line reading 6-4, 1-6, 10-5 in their favor, the pairing of two of the GOATs proved fruitful.
The venue and the prize money for the tournament
The second edition of the Laver Cup will be held at the United Center in Chicago, Illinois. While Team Europe boasts of having Federer and Djokovic, Team World has players like Juan Martin del Potro (Argentina), Kevin Anderson (South Africa) and John Isner (USA). Players earn a participation fee based on their ATP rankings, and the winning team's members get $250,000 each.
