TENNIS Jamaica on Tuesday fired a volley at Blaise Bicknell, telling the senior national team member that it will not give in to threats or ultimatums after he had signalled he was thinking of not representing the country in its Davis Cup Group Two away clash against Lebanon next month.

“Tennis Jamaica is not begging you or any other player to represent our country. It is perhaps one of the greatest honours for an athlete to do so, and anyone who chooses not to represent Jamaica or makes threats intimating same, simply because decisions made in keeping with the rules are not to their liking, will have their wishes respected without apology and without our looking back,” the sport’s governing body told Bicknell in a lengthy letter signed by President John Azar, a copy of which was obtained by the Jamaica Observer.

The response from the board, executive, and members of the Davis Cup Panel came after Bicknell, in a letter sent to Azar on Monday, had expressed displeasure with the make-up of the team.

In the letter Bicknell pointed out that he was baffled by the automatic selection of Daniel Azar, the president’s son, on the team for the Davis Cup clash.

“It has been extremely difficult for me to decide whether or not I should play Davis Cup this September. As I have explained over and over, I feel strongly that Jamaica must send our strongest possible team and that every player on the team should earn their right to be there,” said Bicknell.

“Automatically selecting a player with no ATP ranking, who has lost twice recently too and has a much lower world tennis number than someone who was asked to play trials, was not a decision that was made in the best interest of the team,” he said.

“This player, in my opinion, has not earned his spot on the team and certainly has not achieved the results at the junior, collegiate, or professional level to justify not being required to play trials. I love Daniel as a person and teammate and have nothing against him — and I’m certain that none of this will affect our relationship and overall team chemistry — but I just want him to earn his spot on the team equally, just as we all have had to,” Bicknell said.

However, in response Azar had told the Observer that he had nothing to do with the selection of his son on the team. The selection, he said, was done by the technical committee as well as the Tennis Jamaica board.

“I played zero part in that entire process, and even when it went to the board to be ratified I obviously recused myself, as did my wife who also serves on the board,” he said.

In his letter on Tuesday, Azar said Bicknell’s complaint was grounded in the fact that his brother was not selected for the team.

“Your brother, Jacob, who was a member of the team who played against Estonia… was not recommended for an automatic pick to the team largely as a result of his inactivity throughout all of 2023, save and except for playing in one local, unsanctioned event where his results were less than expected. This recommendation to not automatically select him to the team was also made unanimously by the Davis Cup Panel, as I assume it was clear to them that he had inexplicably played no competitive tennis for well in excess of six months, even knowing that a crucial tie was fast approaching,” Azar said.

He also said it was explained to Bicknell in a meeting that the selection process was fully in keeping with Tennis Jamaica’s selection criteria for national senior teams,and that the criteria remained unchanged from when it was circulated in August 2022 to take effect from October 1, 2022.

“At no point prior to this have you ever expressed any concerns with these criteria,” Azar said, adding that it was reiterated that the selection of his son, as stated in a Tennis Jamaica press release, was provisional on his passing a fitness test to prove he has fully recovered from his recent injury.

“Notwithstanding these clear and precise explanations you have continued to make wild, spurious, and unfounded allegations, seemingly questioning the integrity of all persons involved in the process as well as seemingly questioning the integrity of myself and others who clearly were not involved in the process in any way whatsoever,” Azar said.

He said the board, executive, and members of the Davis Cup Panel “stand united” in making it very clear that, while they intend to win the tie against Lebanon, “it will not be a case of winning at all costs if those costs include the compromising of our rules and principles and yielding to the unreasonable demands of yourself or any player, group of players, family members, or individuals”.

Added Azar: “We are clear that we would rather carry a disciplined team of 14-year-old players who, we accept, would likely lose, but to lose as a team with our pride, principles and values fully intact.”

He advised Bicknell that he should start acting like a senior member of the team and realise that it is now his “seemingly unhinged behaviour which poses the greatest threat” to Jamaica’s success in Lebanon.

“We remind you, and will remind every other player representing Jamaica on a national tennis team, that no player or players — regardless of how good they consider themselves to be — are more important than the team itself. Team unity is not something that is switched on or off, and we want every single national representative to understand the concept of country over self and to appreciate that while their views are important, theirs cannot be the only view taken into consideration. Please note this when having the audacity to state that you will not play for Jamaica in the future unless our criteria are amended to your liking. I respectfully suggest you keep that threat for someone who is scared by it because we certainly are not,” the Tennis Jamaica president said.

“Tennis Jamaica is super proud of our processes with regard to team selection, and we are a model of transparency in that regard. Our selection criteria have been shared with numerous other national tennis federations across the globe as they see ours as one they wish to emulate,” Azar said.

He accused Bicknell of spreading inaccuracies and suggested that he offers an “unequivocal apology” to the members of the Davis Cup Panel in particular for what he considers to be “unprofessional and… disrespectful conduct which seems to stem solely from your obvious disappointment in not having your brother automatically picked to the team”.

Jamaica’s men’s team is scheduled to face Lebanon September 15-16 in a Group 2 Davis Cup clash in the city of Jounieh on outdoor clay courts.