India favourites against Denmark

Coach Zeeshan looks to exploit home advantage

As India take on Denmark in the Davis Cup World Group I play-off first round at the Delhi Gymkhana Club on Friday, it's clear that this is a tie that is must-win and equally winnable.

The hosts can ill afford a slip-up and risk falling further in the pecking order after faltering at the final hurdle to make the World Group a handful of times in the past decade. Against Denmark, India have home advantage and, on paper, a better team. The fact that the tie will be held on grasscourt only stacks up the advantages in their favour.

"It is both (must-win and winnable)," Indian coach Zeeshan Ali told DH.

But the 52-year-old is not taking things lightly.

"Of course, you can't take anyone lightly. It's grass and a three-set match, one break here and there and everything can turn. They are obviously underdogs and not expected to beat India. So that takes pressure off them. Playing in India, while it has advantages, also comes with a lot of pressure. Expectations are higher. It won’t be an easy tie - we have to fight hard."

Ramkumar Ramanathan will be the number one singles player for India and will face Christian Sigsgaard in the first rubber. Yuki Bhambri, in the second singles, will face Mikael Torpengaard. The doubles team of Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan will take on Johannes Ingildsen and Frederik Nielsen on the second day followed by the reserve singles.

It’s an interesting choice.

Ramkumar is a threat on the surface because of his big serve and penchant to advance to the net but he's also the most in-form doubles player in the country. He's two ATP 250 titles, partnering Bopanna, and another Challenger crown with Saketh Myneni.

"No doubt Ram and Rohan are the strongest (pair) given current form," Ali admitted. "I also feel that expecting Ram to go out there and win three matches is putting a lot of pressure on him. He is the No. 1 singles player and our priority is for him to go out there and win his singles matches. Divij and Rohan have played a lot of matches as well. The surface suits Divij's game. So it's not like we are sacrificing."

The choice of Bhambri, probably the most gifted Indian tennis player of his generation, over Prajnesh Gunneswaran is more straightforward.

"The surface played a role in deciding Yuki over Prajnesh. Yuki prefers low bouncing surfaces and I would think on grass he is a better player than Prajnesh is," he added.

The preparations have been good for India with the players having played in India for three consecutive weeks in February, some even playing in Dubai last week.

However, the performance of Indians in the Davis Cup team in the singles competitions has not been ideal with only Bhambri and Prajnesh winning one first round match across the three weeks, albeit the former did not play singles in the Bengaluru Challengers.

That said, the camp in Delhi has been a boon.

"If it was hardcourt we would not have needed such a long camp. Because it is grass, it's a surface our players know how to play on and have experience, but they dont play on it enough. So we figured it would be a good idea. Everyone was here by Friday. The players are looking sharp and we are looking forward to the match,” Ali said.