The preparations for the Davis Cup are being finalized at the Delhi Gymkhana. On Wednesday, Indian captain Rohit Rajpal said on the occasion of Pre draw ceremony, “We are happy that we got here early. We wanted at least 10 days before the tie. Boys went to the TATA Open and then Dubai Open. They were hard surfaces and that’s why I thought we should be here early so that we can get used to the surface and bounce.” He said for the last ten days, they have got a good opportunity to adapt to the grass courts here. On this occasion, Denmark’s captain Friedrich Nilsson also expressed his confidence in his players and said that they were fully prepared to give a tough fight.
When asked about the team Rohit said, “Rohan is a senior player and part of the think tank of the team. He brings lot of experience and I like to take advice from him.” He further added, “We have good line up for singles. Ramkumar won challenger Cup few weeks back so he is in good form. We also have Prajnesh. I am happy that Yuki is back and we have been working on his fitness for past sometime. Hope we will perform well.”
Denmark Captain Frederik Nilsson admitted that India has an edge of playing at home turf and grass court but his team is determined to give a solid fight. Though the weather and the surface they are going to play aren’t suitable for them but still they are hoping for the best, “I trust my boys, playing on the grass court will not be the biggest upset in the history of Davis Cup but its needless to say that it may cause some upsets to win this tie, said Nilsson.” Adding on the Russia-Ukraine crisis, he said, “I am baffled that its happening in our times. It’s an age of conflicts in which we are living in. It saddens me deeply and I feel very bad for the people who are told to go on war because someone has asked them to go.”
Before this, Rohit was optimistic about the future of Indian Tennis. He says, “AITA is trying to create a pipeline for new talents. We are also opening centre of excellence and sports science centre. This way we are trying to cover the gap,” he opined.
India have made it to the Davis Cup final thrice – 1966, 1974 and 1987, but could never won the ‘World Cup of Tennis’ as the premier international team event is popularly described by the International Tennis Federation (ITF). India have been allotted a home tie after three years and Delhi will host Davis Cup matches after more than five years. The last time Delhi had hosted Davis Cup matches was in September 2016 when Rafael Nadal led Spain had whitewashed India 5-0 in the World Group Play-off round at the DLTA complex here. India’s squad for Davis Cup: Prajnesh Gunneswaran, Yuki Bhambri, Rohan Bopanna, Ramkumar, Ramanathan, Divij Sharan, Reserves: Saketh Myneni and Digvijay Pratap Singh.
Denmark’s squad for Davis Cup – Mikael Torpegaard (ranked 210), Johannes Ingildsen (ranked 805), Christian Sigsgaard (ranked 833), Elmer Møller (ranked 1708), Frederik Løchte Nielsen (captain), Coaches: Martin Killemose Linnet & Jacob Holst, Physio: Kim Lykke, Chief of Sports: Jens Anker Andersen, Press Officer: Thomas Hansen, Vice President: Henrik Maris