"This is f**king pathetic"; "Absolute cowards" - Fans aghast by Canada vs Israel Davis Cup tie being hosted behind closed doors despite local protest

The 2025 Davis Cup World Group I playoffs have been hit with controversy this week, as Canada's fixture against Israel in Halifax, Nova Scotia, will be played behind closed doors due to safety concerns. The news has since had a negative reception in the tennis community, with many fans insisting that the tie should've been canceled altogether.

Canada, seeded sixth in the competition, benefited from their Davis Cup qualifier match being scheduled from September 12 to 13 on their home turf against Israel (#30). According to a tennis insider's report, many people in Halifax had called for a prospective boycott of the match at the team event.

"Ppl in Halifax called for a boycott. They were ignored. So solution is to play behind closed doors? Tennis’ hypocrisy is staggering!" tennis journalist Reem Abulleil wrote on her X (formerly Twitter) account earlier on Wednesday.

A horde of tennis fans have since taken umbrage at the International Tennis Federation (ITF) since the official tennis governing body chose to "escalate safety concerns" by organizing the fixture in the absence of local fans, many of whom were against Israel being allowed to play at the Davis Cup owing to the ongoing conflict in Gaza and the West Bank.

"This is f**kin pathetic. Imagine allowing a small handful of terr*orist supporting hamas***es hijack a tennis event," one fan claimed.

"The stain will never come off, you absolute cowards," another fan asserted.

A few others reiterated the sentiment that the Canada-Israel tie at the 125-year-old team event should've been canceled altogether.

"Nasty work how hard they're working to keep eyes off of this game, it's almost like they know it's shameful to host it," one fan claimed.

"Absolutely cowardly stuff and, frankly, an admission that holding the match is wrong," another suggested.

"Cowards. Should've canceled this," one more fan wrote.

One fan, in particular, insisted that fans should beckon Canada's Davis Cup members to abandon the match.

"I think we should get in touch with the Canadian players and implore them not to join the match," they wrote.

While the 2022 champions will be led by ATP singles World No. 35 Gabriel Diallo, the away team will have a relatively weaker side with the likes of Orel Kimhi, Daniel Cukierman, Ofek Shimanov, Jordan Hasson, and Roy Stepanov in tow.

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6-time Davis Cup titlists Spain lead qualifiers second-round favorites in absense of Carlos Alcaraz

Carlos Alcaraz, meanwhile, secured his sixth Major title at the 2025 US Open on Sunday (September 7), beating archrival Jannik Sinner 6-2, 3-6, 6-1, 6-4 in the men's singles final. The Spaniard consequently withdrew from Spain's Davis Cup second-round outing against Denmark later this week due to fatigue.

Sixth-seeded Spain has won the annual team event six times (2000, 2004, 2008-09, 2011, 2019). The likes of Germany (#4), USA (#5), Croatia (#7), and France (#8) will also vie for the last seven Davis Cup Finals spots. Italy has directly qualified for the event in Bologna by virtue of their back-to-back titles in 2023-2