Stakhovsky withdraws from “dangerous” Mons to object Davis Cup decision

Sergiy Stahovsky has withdrawn from the Mons Challenger in Belgium this week, protesting the decision not to allow Ukraine to hold a September Davis Cup tie for security reasons.

This month's World Group playoff tie between Ukraine and Belgium was to be held in Kiev, but the Belgian Tennis Federation, citing political conflict in the country, asked to have it moved to a neutral site. The federation was successful on appeal, with the contest played in Estonia to few spectators.

One of the ATP tour's most prominent voices on political issues, Stakhovsky objected to the decision, saying the violence was confined to the eastern portion of the country.

Stakhovsky withdrew from Mons while on his way to winning the Challenger event in Orleans, referencing Davis Cup by writing on Twitter:

Speaking at the U.S. Open, Ukraine's top-ranked player had criticized the Belgian federation for attempting to increase their chances of winning the tie, having previously also appealed to keep a player from competing for Kazakstan before a tie. He repeated his remarks while responding to others on social media, but said his objection was to the federation, rather than Belgium.

The tournament director at Mons, Dominique Monami, also responded pointedly, thanking Stakhovsky for allowing Belgian Steve Darcis to get into the draw:

'Anything I can do to make a TD happy,' said Stakhovsky, who has returned to Kiev for the week.