It would have cost an extra $8,000 for Bermuda's Davis Cup squad to train overseas for a week and be sent to Costa Rica ahead of the American Zone Group Four tournament.

This, says president of the Bermuda Lawn Tennis Association (BLTA) David Lambert, was an expense the sport's national governing body could not afford given its tight finances.

"I had mentioned to the players that we would love to have sent the whole team to Florida for a week and then to Costa Rica for three or four days before they were scheduled to play. We just didn't have the money," said Lambert, reacting to calls by Davis Cup players for more acclimatisation time in countries hosting competitions.

Disclosing that the BLTA spent $15,000 on the Costa Rica trip, he pointed out that the organisation had other obligations such as the Fed Cup this month and the 14-and-under Caribbean Championships in August and its commitment to each national team - junior or senior - had to be equal.

"If we're going to send teams to training camps for the Davis Cup team, we have to be in a position to do it for the Fed Cup team and for the Caribbean Championships. That's a huge financial commitment and before we say yes we have to make sure we can afford to do it for all our teams.

"Right now, with everything we have going on and having to run the BLTA, we just don't have those funds.

"Some countries have millions and hundreds of thousands of dollars to work with. We don't and we're not making any excuses. The BLTA does the best it can with the money it has," said Lambert candidly.

However, as a former Bermuda Davis Cup captain and player, he empathised with the pleas of James Collieson and Jenson Bascome, two of the Island's squad members.

Their concern was that they went into competition last Monday having arrived late Saturday night and with virtually no time to adapt to the wind and high altitude in Costa Rica. Also, they revealed that teams such as the US Virgin Islands had training camps in Florida to get used to hot conditions and arrived in Costa Rica well before the tournament.

"I agree with what they are saying. From my experience when I was a Davis Cup captain, I always felt that if the team could arrive at their destination early it made a major difference."

Lambert explained that a change in the International Tennis Federation's (ITF) policy in 2001 has been to the detriment of many Davis Cup-playing countries, including Bermuda.

"Up to 2001 the ITF covered all of the travel expenses, all of the accommodations plus (gave) a $3,000 allowance per team (for equipment). None of that happens anymore so the BLTA and all the other travelling nations have to carry 95 percent of their respective expenses.

"It shocked a lot of countries and some have not been able to field teams since then because they can't afford to," he noted.

Regarding current Davis Cup policy, the president said participating nations had to pay their own airfares plus any excess over the host nation's allowance of $50 per person for accommodation. Additional accommodation costs - either before or after the scheduled dates for which the host nation pays - must also be borne by the respective visiting nation.

Given that there was no indication if this policy was a short-term or permanent one, Lambert intends to seek clarification on this new system at the ITF's Annual General Meeting in Brazil in September.

"When we go to the AGM we will ascertain whether this is how it's going to be from now on or what. We will know what we're dealing with then."

Should it be a permanent situation, he said, the BLTA would require more sponsorship to help its various teams. This would not be easy, he noted, as corporate Bermuda already pulls its pocket for schools' tennis as well as other ventures.

"Now we have to go back to them again and unfortunately there's only so many sponsors in position to keep giving."

Lambert lauded the efforts of Bermuda's tennis players in Costa Rica, saying the team "did their best" and maintained the Island's proud history of being a worthy adversary.

"We're never blown away. It's always tough competition and our record speaks for itself. We've been promoted twice. We're not short on talent - just money."