Aisam to set ball rolling in Davis Cup tie

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s top player Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi will set the ball rolling in Davis Cup Group I tie today (Saturday) against India’s grass court specialist Ramkumar Ramanathan in what could be termed an eagerly-awaited occasion here at the Pakistan Sports Complex.

Tie Referee Javier Moreno Perez conducted the draw ceremony at Serena Hotels Friday that saw both countries’ leading players get pitched against each other at the outset. The second singles on the opening day will see Aqeel Khan taking on Sriram Balaji.

Pakistan opted for Muzammil Murtaza and Barkatullah in the doubles against Yuki Bhambri and Saketh Myneni tomorrow (Sunday) followed by reverse singles between Aqeel and Ramkumar Ramanathan and then between Aisam and Balaji.

Both the teams will have the option to make changes if they desire on the second day both in doubles and reverse singles.

“It is good to see our best grass court player starting the proceedings in the historic tie. Aisam is playing brilliant tennis these days as in practice sessions he looks unbeatable. Hopefully he would continue with the same vein today and would give Pakistan a winning start,” Mohammad Abid, non-playing captain of Pakistan team, told ‘The News’.

Aisam was also excited at the outcome of draws, saying that he had decided to play singles more because of the high voltage tie.

“This tie is more about staying calm and making the best of the given opportunity. Here confidence would matter the most and I am hopeful that favourable draw where I am pitted to play the opening match of this historic tie would help us a lot,” he said.

Early Saturday a half an hour opening ceremony has also been planned that will be followed by the opening singles starting at 11am.

“Obviously, when it comes to playing at home and on courts where you play regularly, you get an edge. We are used to playing on these courts and am confident that we would be in a position to pose a strong challenge to the visitors.”

“You cannot rate them favourites with a simple reason that these players are highly ranked and because they have the advantage of playing circuit tennis on a regular basis. We have defeated many teams that came here in the recent past for the Davis Cup ties. We defeated some of the best teams and even those players ranked inside hundred in the world. So you cannot rate India as outright favourites to win the tie.

It will be a close contest with the player holding his nerve in a better way is expected to carry the day. We have been playing as underdogs at home for years and at the same time mostly we are winning these ties,” Aisam said.

Aisam excited at Bopanna’s feat

Aisam-ul-Haq was excited to see his old buddy Rohan Bopanna winning the Australian Open doubles as he called the entire family to congratulate them.

“We have played together and have got bonding. I was excited to learn that Rohan has won the Australian Open doubles. I called Rohan and his parents to congratulate them on their achievement.”

Aisam reiterated that both the countries should now start thinking in terms of having regular exchanges on the sports front.

“I think the Indian team’s visit here will break the ice. Like tennis, cricket and hockey teams should also start travelling across the border to honour their international commitments. It is good to see Indian tennis sending the team here instead of forfeiting the tie.”