Pakistan tennis officials are insisting action be taken
against New Zealand if the team refuses to play their Davis Cup
tie in Pakistan.
New Zealand officials requested the International Tennis
Federation (ITF) review its tour schedule after advancing to
the Asia-Oceania zone group two semifinal with a win over Sri
Lanka this week.
The July 9-11 tie against Pakistan was scheduled to take
place in Pakistan, but New Zealand have asked for it to be
moved to either New Zealand or a neutral venue because of
security concerns.
Tennis New Zealand events and operations manager Tracy Hall
said the ITF had already shown flexibility in its scheduling
by having the first-round tie between Pakistan and Hong
Kong-China moved from Pakistan to the former British colony.
"They moved it from Pakistan because it was too dangerous,"
Hall said.
However, Pakistan Tennis Federation (PTF) chief selector
Khawaja Saeed Hai, a former senior Davis Cup player, has
demanded the International Tennis Federation (ITF) take
action against New Zealand if they refuse to play in
Pakistan.
"Pakistan has suffered financially and lost home advantage as
teams refusing to play in Pakistan on security fears," Saeed
Hai told the Associated Press of Pakistan.
He said he had asked ITF to press the New Zealanders to play
in Pakistan as there was no security problem, and warned they
might be penalised for default if they refused to play.
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