Davis Cup: British team arrives in Belgium as ITF confirms final will go ahead

Leon Smith must choose between Kyle Edmund and James Ward

(Getty Images)

Britain’s Davis Cup team were practising for the first time at the venue for the final last night as officials confirmed that the tie would go ahead in Ghent despite nearby Brussels remaining on maximum alert because of the threat of terrorist attacks.

Leon Smith, the British captain, and his team flew to Belgium by private jet on Monday morning, 24 hours later than had been originally planned, and were training on the indoor clay court at the 13,000-capacity Flanders Expo arena by mid-afternoon.

The British squad – Andy and Jamie Murray, Dominic Inglot, Kyle Edmund and James Ward – travelled together and were joined by two hitting partners, Dan Evans and the left-hander Ken Skupski. Smith says he will choose between Edmund and Ward as to Britain’s second singles player behind Andy Murray.

Belgium’s players have had more time to prepare together for the final and were at a training camp near Namur last week. However, they were not allowed to practise at the venue until yesterday.

While Brussels remains at the highest level of terror alert – level four – the rest of Belgium is at level three, which is the same as Britain’s. Ghent is only 35 miles from the Belgian capital, but other big sporting events have taken place safely in the city in recent days.

The terror alert in Brussels was raised on Saturday because of the threat of “serious and imminent” Paris-style attacks. Charles Michel, Belgium’s Prime Minister, said on Sunday that the level of alert in the Brussels area would stay at level four. The city’s metro system, schools and universities all remained closed yesterday.

A spokeswoman for Tennis Vlaanderen, which administers tennis in the Ghent region, said yesterday that the interior ministry, police and independent security experts had been consulted and the final was “definitely going ahead”. Britain’s attempt to win the competition for the first time since 1936 will begin on Friday.

The International Tennis Federation, which organises the Davis Cup, said that extra security measures had been put in place for the final. “The ITF and Royal Belgian Tennis Federation, in consultation with the relevant officials and our risk assessment and security advisers, are closely monitoring the situation in Belgium and specifically in Ghent,” the ITF said. “As of today there are no changes to the previously published start times.”

The ITF added: “We are taking every necessary step to ensure the safety of the teams, the spectators, the media and all working staff. As you would expect, a number of specific, additional security measures have been put in place for this weekend’s tie.”

Those additional security measures include a ban on spectators carrying bags into the stadium, while nobody without tickets will be allowed near the site. Spectators – including more than 1,000 from Britain – have been advised to arrive early because of additional security checks. Gates will open two hours before the start of play on each day.