India are set to host New Zealand in the Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Group 1 tie from February 3-5, 2017. India are back in the Asia/Oceania zone after being thrashed by five-time champions Spain 5-0 in the World Group play-off.
India's non-playing captain Anand Amritraj said that the top singles players, who have missed the last two ties due to injuries, will hopefully be back in the team. The surface and venue of the tie has not been decided yet, he added.
"It's good for us that we are playing at home. Let's hope that Yuki Bhambri and Somdev Devvarman get back to playing in the side. It's still a few months away. I will discuss with AITA (All India Tennis Association) about the surface and venue soon," Amritraj told PTI.
The Maharashtra State Lawn Tennis Association is interested in hosting the clash and is expected to send a letter to AITA soon, the report said. In that case, Pune will be the venue.
India have not lost to New Zealand in the last five Davis Cup ties played between the two teams. If India win the first round, they will clash with the winner between Uzbekistan and Korea in round two. If they play Uzbekistan, it will again be a home tie. However, it will be an away fixture if they face Korea, scheduled for April 7-9.
Having lost to Spain, India were seeded second in the Asia/Oceania Group 1, behind Kazakhstan. Group 1 also includes China, Chinese Taipei, Korea Republic and Uzbekistan.
