No room for excuses, says Bhupathi

Kolkata, January 30

India’s non-playing captain Mahesh Bhupathi said there was no room for excuses in the Davis Cup qualifier, especially after India got whatever they had desired. 

Bhupathi said home comfort and the X-factor of Calcutta South Club’s grasscourts held India in good stead in the tie. “We definitely feel that this is our best chance to beat Italy on grass. Hard and clay are their strengths,” Bhupathi said on the eve of the draw. “We will know on Saturday if the advantage played out for us or not. We’ve got the grass so I don’t think we have any room for excuses anymore,” he added.

Bhupathi also made it clear that India won’t miss veteran Leander Paes during their qualifier against Italy on February 1 and 2. Paes, who is the most successful doubles player in the history of Davis Cup with a record of 43 wins overall, has been sidelined since India’s 3-2 win in China at the Asia/Oceania second round in April last year. Asked if India would be at a disadvantageous position minus Paes on a familiar surface, Bhupathi was dismissive in his reply. “No, it’s not.”

Bhupathi is happy that India have both right-handed (Ramkumar Ramanathan) and a left-handed (Prajnesh Gunneswaran) singles player. Bhupathi pointed out that in Gunneswaran, who is ranked 102 and is a left-hander, he’s got a “dream” combination. “Gunneswaran has got big serve, big forehand, and he’s a left-hander. I think it’s a captain’s dream to have that kind of variation in your side,” Bhupathi said.

Grasscourt makes tie tougher for us: Barazzutti

Italy’s non-playing captain Corrado Barazzutti acknowledged that playing on an unfamiliar grasscourt will be their biggest challenge in the qualifier against hosts India. “That is the court and we have nothing to complain,” Barazzutti, who was a member of their only Davis Cup winning team of 1976, said. “India decided to play here as they think grass is more difficult for us. The Italian team has not played a lot on grass but it is okay. We know we have to play very well. We play this match with a lot of respect for these players.”

No one in the Italy squad has played a Davis Cup tie on grass and same is the case with India’s top-ranked player Gunneswaran and Divij Sharan, who is set to partner Rohan Bopanna in the doubles. — PTI

Revamped draw to be held on February 14

The draw to determine the groups and quarterfinal ties of the revamped Davis Cup will be held in host city Madrid on February 14. The 18 teams competing this year will be decided at the weekend, when 24 potential qualifiers vie to join 2018 semifinalists Croatia, France, Spain and the United States, plus wildcards Argentina and Britain. The finals are on November 18-24. The 18 finalists will be split into six groups with the winners of each group advancing to the knockout phase along with the two second-placed teams with the best percentage of sets, games and points won. Six teams will be seeded for the draw, including last year’s winners Croatia and runners-up France. The remaining seeds will be determined in accordance with the Davis Cup nations ranking as of February 4. — Reuters