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Davis Cup: Depleted India start favourites against Togo
The hosts will be missing their top players but they should have enough firepower to emerge victorious
Though India will be playing their first Davis Cup tie at home in two years, neither their top singles nor doubles players will be available for the two-day contest against Togo at the Delhi Lawn Tennis Association (DLTA) complex here.
India’s highest ranked singles tennis player Sumit Nagal (world No.106) and doubles player Yuki Bhambri (No.47) are unavailable for the World Group I playoff. While Nagal is currently in Buenos Aires where he will be playing the Argentina Open (an ATP 250 event) from February 10, Bhambri lost the men’s doubles quarter-final partnering Ivan Dodig at Open Occitanie (ATP 250) in Montpellier, France, on Thursday.
“Yuki wouldn’t have played singles anyway. I don’t know what the reason was with Sumit not playing but if he’s our best player, then needless to say (he should play) except if he has a really severe injury because everybody plays with some niggle here and there,” Indian tennis great Vijay Amritraj said on the eve of the Davis Cup tie.
“Nothing gives you more confidence than playing Davis Cup. You win one Davis Cup match in front of your home crowd, it doesn’t matter whether it’s 200 or 2,000, that makes a huge difference for your whole season.”
The last time Bhambri played for India was in the World Group I playoff against Pakistan a year back in Islamabad. Nagal last turned up in Indian colours in the World Group II Round 1 against Morocco at Lucknow in September 2023. India won both the contests.
If India win the tie against world No.73 Togo, they will play in a World Group I tie in September, hoping to make the Qualifiers and Finals next year. With none of Togo’s singles players ranked even in the top 1,200, the tie should be a cakewalk for the team which includes Sasikumar Mukund ranked at 365, Ramkumar Ramanathan at 406 and Karan Singh at 496.
