"This is absurd & disrespectful" - Fans react to Alejandro Davidovich Fokina's 'odd' exclusion from Spain's Carlos Alcaraz-led Davis Cup Finals squad

Alejandro Davidovich Fokina hasn't been picked by David Ferrer for Spain's 2025 Davis Cup Finals team, despite being the country's No. 2 right now in men's singles, only behind the top-ranked Carlos Alcaraz. The development led to Davidovich Fokina himself issuing a response, and several tennis fans too, were angered by Ferrer's decision.

On Monday, October 20, Spain's team for the 2025 Davis Cup Finals was announced. The four players to have made the cut based on captain David Ferrer's decision-making are reigning World No. 1 Carlos Alcaraz, 42nd-ranked Jaume Munar, No. 88 Pedro Martinez and 8th-ranked doubles specialist Marcel Granollers. A fifth player is expected to be named the week before Spain begins its Davis Cup Finals campaign.

David Ferrer's decision to exclude World No. 18 Alejandro Davidovich Fokina led to the latter issuing a firm response. Davidovich Fokina told Marca:

"Being ranked number 18 in the world, I believe I deserved to be among the four best players of my country, with all due respect to my teammates, who as I have said are also great players. Now, my objective is to focus on what’s left of the season and prepare to reach the highest level next year."

Many fans on X (formerly Twitter) and Reddit voiced their support for Alejandro Davidovich Fokina and wondered why Ferrer chose not to include him in Spain's Carlos Alcaraz-led 2025 Davis Cup Finals team.

"I assumed not going was his choice. this is absurd and disrespectful," one fan wrote. "Isn’t he the number 2 ranked Spaniard right now? Does seem odd to leave him off. I think he worded his response well too tbh, it’s a pretty tough spot to be in," opined one. "With all due respect to captain David Ferrer - Alejandro Davidovich Fokina should have been on the Spanish team," commented another. "No shade to the other players but foku is higher-ranked than all but carlos and having him could probably up their winning chances imo," another fan chimed in. "Nominating 4 Players instead of 5 like most other teams, just to exclude him is crazy," added another. "Well then it's really stupid to not select someone like ADF, I thought he was unavailable," weighed in yet another fan.

David Ferrer's decision to snub Alejandro Davidovich Fokina for Davis Cup Finals may have stemmed from Spaniard's withdrawal from qualifier against Denmark

David Ferrer during Spain's 2025 Davis Cup Qualifiers second-round clash against Denmark (Source: Getty)

In September this year, shortly after the conclusion of the US Open, Alejandro Davidovich Fokina pulled out of Spain's second-round Davis Cup Qualifiers contest against Denmark. At the time, the Spaniard cited fatigue and a busy schedule as reasons behind his withdrawal.

Interestingly, Carlos Alcaraz too had withdrawn from the tie, with the World No. 1's decision stemming from a combination of physical and mental fatigue due to his exploits at the 2025 US Open, where he won the men's singles title by defeating Jannik Sinner in the final.

Jaume Munar, Pedro Martinez, Roberto Carballes Baena and Pablo Carreno Busta were the four players who represented Spain against Denmark. The Spaniards managed to register an impressive comeback victory against the Danes, with Martinez making a lasting impression by upsetting Holger Rune.

Edited by Sudipto Pati