On grass, in the heat of the New Delhi spring. These are the elements deemed perfect for the Indian Davis Cup team, and a set of conditions that would keep the visitors from Denmark suitably unsettled. On Thursday, at the draw ceremony ahead of the World Group 1 Playoff tie at the Delhi Gymkhana, the Indian team received another boost.
In the opening rubber of the tie, India’s No 1 singles player Ramkumar Ramanathan was drawn to play Denmark’s World No 824 Christian Sigsgaard. That Ramkumar, ranked 170 in singles and 95 in doubles, gets the first match was crucial for a team looking to ensure they do not sink to the lower division World Group 2 for the first time ever.
“Ramkumar gets on first, we were looking forward to that and hopefully he will give us a good start,” said non-playing captain Rohit Rajpal at a press conference. “That takes the pressure off the second guy who’s coming on.”
The ‘second guy’ is World No 590 Yuki Bhambri. But the 29-year-old’s ranking is misleading.
The Delhi lad has only ever sunk down the ranking ladder due to injury – and there have been a lot of them. In between though, he’s twice broken into the Top 100. The latest climb down the ladder comes due to a recurring knee problem that started in 2018 and required surgery last year.
Bhambri – a talented player and the 2009 Junior Australian Open champion – being back in the team is a bonus for the Indians, but since he still hasn’t had enough matches under the belt, any ounce of confidence he can get will be welcome.
It might not be all that easy as he takes on Denmark’s spearhead in this tie Mikael Torpegaard.
The 27-year-old from Gentofte – just north of Copenhagen – is currently ranked 305 but has reached as high as 166 on the tour. At 6-foot-4, he has a big serve that comes with that towering frame, and he comes to the tie with a nothing-to-lose mentality.
“I really like the idea of embracing the underdog role and getting the opportunity to play a little more freely,” he said. “It’s not often you get to take your chances on a surface you don’t know.”
Such a fearless approach can easily backfire, but can also be just as devastating for the opponent. India has seen it happen in the last two Davis Cup ties the team has played.
Against Croatia in 2020, the target was for then World No 132 Prajnesh Gunneswaran to get a point off No 277 Borna Gojo. But the Croat played a hard-hitting brand of tennis, aided by the cushion that there was a certain Marin Cilic there to pick up the pieces in the second match. The same happened against Finland when the lower ranked Otto Virtanen pulled-off an upset win over Prajnesh, only for their Top 100 player Emil Ruusuvuori to extend the lead.
That’s why it’s crucial that Ramkumar get an early lead on Friday. Surely, the 654 ranking spots between the two makes the big-serving player from Chennai the overwhelming favourite for the match. The conditions too will make a difference.
On the low-bouncing, zipping grass of the Delhi Gymkhana, the incessant serve-and-volley Ramkumar – sometimes playing the chip-and-charge game even when hugging the baseline is a better strategy – may find more purchase.
It’s a style that has helped him gain great success off late in the doubles circuit – winning three ATP events and one Challenger title back-to-back. And it may help him put India in the lead on Friday, to set up proceedings for Bhambri.
For Saturday’s doubles tie, veteran Rohan Bopanna will take to the court a day after turning 42, with Divij Sharan. The duo face Denmark’s captain Frederik Nielsen – who won the 2012 Wimbledon title – and Johannes Ingildsen.
Ramkumar has been, for now, overlooked for the doubles match (he did win both his ATP titles with Bopanna) to allow him space to recover for the return singles rubber if it is required.
“The idea is that Divij and Rohan have played a lot together and done well for India on grass,” Rajpal explained.
“We’re also trying to take some pressure off Ram. He’s coming on first tomorrow, then the second day too he’ll be on court after the doubles. We wanted to save him for singles, so that’s why we put faith in this team.”
It’s not a bad team to have put together by any means, especially against an underdog Denmark team with – barring Nielsen – little to no experience of playing on grass.
The draw:
Match 1: Ramkumar Ramanathan (170) vs Christian Sigsgaard (824)
Match 2: Yuki Bhambri (590) vs Mikael Torpegaard (305)
Match 3: Rohan Bopanna (32) and Divij Sharan (142) vs Frederik Nielsen and Johannes Ingildsen (557)
Match 4: Ramkumar Ramanathan (170) vs Mikael Torpegaard (305)
Match 5: Yuki Bhambri vs Christian Sigsgaard (824)