CHENNAI: It’s official. February’s Davis Cup qualifiers for the Finals will be held at Kolkata’s South Club. There were reports that New Delhi was the early front-runner to host the two-day tie beginning on February 1. But the players’ insistence on playing the tie on grass — a surface the Italians aren’t too strong in — swung it Kolkata’s way. “I must thank the All India Tennis Association (AITA) for the way in which they accepted and handled our request,” Zeeshan Ali, India’s Davis Cup coach, told Express. He said this because the main court at South Club, strictly speaking, doesn’t satisfy the International Tennis Federation’s norms for hosting Davis Cup World Group and play-off ties. It calls for a minimum space of 27 feet from the baseline to the stands.
The space in the centre court is only 21 feet from the baseline but the ITF, according to Ali, were willing to make an exception this one time. “AITA wrote to them asking for an exception from the ITF which was granted and I am delighted that we will be playing them on grass,” Ali said. Considering that it will be immediately after the Australian Open, the players will have to transition from hard court to grass but Ali did not think of that as a potential problem.
“This decision was made by Mahesh (Bhupathi, captain) and me after having a very long talk with the players. All of them felt that playing on grass is the best opportunity to tackle the Italians.” There is sound logic behind’s India’s decision to play the tie on grass even if it’s so early in the calendar. Italy may boast five players in the top 100 but they, together, won only 10 main draw matches on grass at the World Tour level this year. While both Thomas Fabbiano and Fabio Fognini reached the third round at Wimbledon, a feat none of the Indians managed, their middling record is there for all to see.
The last time India hosted a tie on grass — against South Korea at Chandigarh in July 2016 — they won the encounter 4-1. There will be a total of 24 qualifiers, with 12 winners advancing to the new look Davis Cup Finals in Madrid in November. They will be joined by the four semifinalists of 2018 (Croatia, France, Spain and USA) along with two wild cards (Argentina and Great Britain).