PUNE: Those New Zealanders with their famed ‘haka’ at rugby are not quite as ferocious on the tennis court. But India’s outgoing captain Anand Amritraj is not taking them lightly.
The Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Group I Round I tie, which will be held in Pune from February 3-5, looks like an easy encounter for India on paper. They have gone into the tie with three singles players, Saketh Myneni (World No 205), Ramkumar Ramanathan (276) and Yuki Bhambri (368), and seem to have a clear rankings edge over the visitors with Finn Tearney placed 414 and Jose Statham at 417 on the charts.
“It is not a sure thing (that India will get through this tie),” said Amritraj, who will captain India for the last time in Pune, before handing over the reins to Mahesh Bhupathi.
“It looks very lopsided on paper, that’s the problem,” he added. “It means more pressure on us. Ties against Spain and Serbia are easy because we don’t really have a chance. These matches are tough because you are expected to win. I am sure New Zealand want a second crack at us.”
The two teams had last met in July 2015 in cold Christchurch and the Kiwis had run the Indians ragged. After sharing the honours on day one, New Zealand tilted the balance in their favour by winning the doubles rubber. Artem Sitak and Marcus Daniell raced past the Indian combo of Rohan Bopanna and Myneni in straight sets to give the home team a 2-1 advantage going into the third day. Somdev Devvarman and Bhambri had risen to the challenge then and denied New Zealand an improbable win.
“That was at home. We had the home-court advantage. We played really well,” said Sitak, who will be keen to put it across the Indians this time again.
“This is different. Different courts, different conditions. We can’t think about that tie. We just have to focus and think about what we need to do for this one now.”
The Russia-born player, though, is teaming up with New Zealand’s highest-ranked doubles player Michael Venus (36) this time around. And Sitak is looking forward to the challenge that Leander Paes, who missed the tie in 2015, will pose. Paes is on the verge of a Davis Cup record for the most doubles wins, 43, but goes into the tie not quite knowing his partner for the historic occasion.
“We haven’t decided on who will play doubles,” said Amritraj.
History and home advantage are stacking up for India, but the New Zealand dark horses look keen to run through it.
deeptipatwardhan@newindianexpress.com