CHENNAI: The International Tennis Federation (ITF) has refused to entertain the All India Tennis Association’s (AITA) request to postpone or change the venue of the India-Pakistan Davis Cup tie to be held in Islamabad.
In an email to AITA, the world body said there will neither be a postponement or a change of venue for the upcoming Asia-Oceania Group I Davis Cup tie. Over a series of emails to ITF in the last 72 hours, the AITA had reiterated its stance that the situation in Pakistan isn’t ‘conducive’ to play, given the worsening diplomatic relationships between the two nations.
Contrary to the AITA’s assertion, the ITF has held that it will be safe to play in Pakistan. “They are not able to understand our concerns,” AITA general secretary, Hironmoy Chatterjee, told this daily.
“They have provided us with the detailed security arrangements that they have done for the team from the time the squad reaches the airport till the time they depart for the airport after the completion of the two-day tie.”
Based on those arrangements (airport to hotel, hotel to venue, venue to hotel and hotel to airport), the ITF has let AITA know that there is no need for a change of venue or for a postponement. But Chatterjee’s fears are what happens if the team is left stranded in Pakistan? “That security is going to be provided by the Pakistan government. What happens if somebody higher up suddenly decides to pull security? The team will be left stranded, with nowhere to go. We don’t even have an ambassador in the country who could help us in such a scenario.”
AITA had wanted to take the matter to the Davis Cup Board but the ITF, in the same correspondence, said AITA can speak to the world body’s security experts and select executives in a teleconference scheduled for August 19. “We will hope to convince them about the ground realities and the prevailing tension between the two nations. If they still don’t come around to our line of thinking, we will write to the ITF formally seeking a change of venue,” said Chatterjee.
If the ITF does not agree to that as well, there is a chance of India forfeiting the tie, as it’s clear that the players do not want to travel to Pakistan at this point in time. While AITA sought to postpone the tie in an email addressed to ITF executive director Justine Albert on Wednesday, the players and other team members are of the opinion that it won’t solve the concerns they have as a group of travelling to Pakistan. To have a representative from the contingent, Chatterjee has asked captain Mahesh Bhupathi to be present during the teleconference.
In the email on Tuesday, Chatterjee wrote: “(...) since the current situation does not seem to be conducive, in our opinion (...) ITF Board of Directors suo moto by itself may decide to shift this particular tie to a neutral venue at ITF’s cost.”
A day later, Chatterjee made the case for postponing the tie for at least two months. “(...) in view of the current situation, ITF should follow the example it had set up in the tie between India and USA and postpone this particular Davis Cup tie for two months by which the matters would have stabilised and the atmosphere will be conducive for holding a friendly tie.” Chatterjee was referring to the 2001 tie between India and USA, which was scheduled between September 21 and 23. It was pushed back to October because of the 9/11 attacks “even though there was no security threat,” Chatterjee wrote.
“This was a good decision keeping in mind the interest of the moods of the nations and the players. A good atmosphere is extremely important for Davis Cup ties.”