Saketh Myneni.
Credit: DH File Photo
Over the years, sport has been one of the collateral damages of the volatile relationship shared between India and Pakistan. With sporting teams from either side seldom travelling to each other's countries to compete, the Indian tennis team landed a rare opportunity to play in Islamabad for a Davis Cup Group I play-off tie against the hosts.
As expected, India overcame the challenge quite comfortably by beating Pakistan 4-0 to take them back to Group I and along with that made memories for a lifetime. The last time an Indian team crossed borders for a Davis Cup clash was 60 years ago in 1964.
‘Great hospitality, tight security, nice people, similar culture’ were the unanimous replies from N Sriram Balaji, Niki Poonacha, Ramkumar Ramanathan and Saketh Myneni when asked about their experience during an interaction with the media at the KSLTA during the Bengaluru Open.
“They took care of us very well. Many people were excited to have us and to show that they could take care of us. They wanted to set an example to show other sports like cricket and hockey to go there to play. Looking at so many Indian flags flying at the stadium felt good,” shared Sunil Yajaman, who was the team manager.
The team who were unsure of boarding a flight until the last minute got their visas cleared only a day before the departure. One of the members, Karnataka’s Prajwal Dev who was in Delhi for the entire camp missed out because of visa issues.
Speaking about the camaraderie between the players of the two countries, Aisam Qureshi, who was Rohan Bopanna’s doubles partner on the ATP Tour, garnered the most admiration.
“He (Qureshi) was in fact instrumental in Pakistan getting to host this tie,” said Yajaman.
“We are all good friends. We don't want politics or anything involved here. We are all tennis players. We all speak the same language (Hindi). Though we would have loved to go out and see places outside the hotel and court, we had a great time,” expressed Balaji.
“Having a Pakistan stamp on my passport is something I will cherish. Doesn't happen to too many of us, does it?,” quipped Myneni.
The next Davis Cup assignment for the Indian team will be an away tie against Sweden in September. Though there are a few months before preparations begin, the Indians are confident of their chances. Given the good form Sumit Nagal is in and a good mix of doubles players, India, for now, holds an upper hand against a team that currently has no top-100 player. Siblings Mikael (World No. 188) and Elias Ymer (WN 158) are their best bet.
“Ranking doesn’t matter so much. I mean, Aisam had no ranking and we all saw how he played (the 43-year-old Lahori troubled Ramkumar in his 6-7(3) 7-6(4), 6-0 narrow win in the first rubber). It comes down to nerves. It is going to be a close contest. Even though its clay, we have a good chance at it,” offered Ramkumar.