Beset by injuries to singles players and ‘mistrust’ between the Rio-bound doubles players, India would expect young Ramkumar Ramanathan and Saketh Myneni (in pic) to rise to the occasion when they face Korea in the Asia/Oceania Group 1 Davis Cup tie, starting here on Friday.
The 21-year-old Ramkumar will make his Davis Cup debut for the country as Yuki Bhambri and Somdev Devvarman are nursing their respective injuries.
The Chennai lad’s game is full of energy, passion and sharp strokes, especially his forehand, but lack of consistency has not taken him far on the Tour. This is the moment for him to enhance his reputation by winning Davis Cup matches for the country.
He has won a few tough matches, lost a few close contests and is good enough to pull it off together with Myneni against the Koreans, who have landed without their best player, Hyeon Chung, ranked 107 now but was career-best 51 last year.
In his absence the best-ranked player in Korean camp is Seong-chan Hong, who is placed as low as 427 in the ATP singles list. Yong-Kyu lim (626), Yunseong Chung (628) and Hong Chung (655) are the other players in the side.
This line-up is not likely to trouble India who have far more experienced players in the squad. Myneni now has played three ties and has lost only one doubles match.
Myneni, though, has been troubled by a shoulder injury recently and it is crucial for the hosts that he remains physically fit. He has the game required to win matches in this tie.
Expectations while representing the nation can create a lot of pressure in the head but both Ramkumar and Myneni have the chance to deliver now. They are not up against a formidable rival and have home advantage plus the fan support.
led by Somdev , a new crop of singles players more comfortable playing on hard courts, took over and the country’s preferred surface became hard courts in recent years. The winner of tie will advance to World Group Play-offs and will clash with either China or Uzbekistan. For India, it will be an away tie if they advance to Play-offs.