Express News Service
CHENNAI: The hosts took a significant step towards advancing to the World Group I after winning both their opening rubbers against Denmark in the Group I playoffs on Friday. After Ramkumar Ramanathan eased past Christian Sigsgaard 6-3, 6-2, Yuki Bhambri fought off the more established Mikael Torpegaard 6-4, 6-4. It’s the first time that India have won both singles matches on the opening day since they blanked Pakistan in 2019.
Even though both Sigsgaard (world No 824) and Torpegaard (305) are inferior players when compared to their Indian counterparts, Davis Cup ties have the tendency of veering off course.
One reason why it stayed true to the template was India’s decision to play on grass. Ramkumar used that fast and low surface to maximum effect as he wrapped his opener in 59 minutes itself. The key, as always for him, is predated on a good service. Even though his first serve percentages were down (60%), he lost only four points on his first serve in the entire match.
In sharp contrast, Sigsgaard served eight double faults, and managed to win only five points on his second serve (31%). That was never going to be enough against Ramkumar. “I served pretty well, I was sharp,” he said after the match. “The team and fan support also made the big difference. I just had to stay with the ball and make returns. A few free points also did the trick,” the 27-year-old added.
The first match may have settled down the nerves but Bhambri knew he was in for a tougher fight the moment his match began. Even though he broke the Dane’s serve immediately, the Dane broke back. At 4-3 and 0-30, Torpegaard had a clear opening to steal a march. But Bhambri dug deep to hold serve before breaking to take the first set. He found himself down 15-40 but finally landed some good serves to give himself some room.
Both players struggled with their serves in the second stanza — Bhambri landed only 37% of his first serves while the Dane served five double faults including three in one game — but the Indian had opened a big 5-1 lead. Even though his opponent reduced the arrears to 5-4, Bhambri just about hung on.
Even if the match looked a lot closer than the scoreline, the Indian said that he always had control on proceedings. “In Davis Cup, it’s more about fighting than playing well. I fought well and hard today,” Yuki said. “The match was always on my racquet, it was always in my control. It was a matter of stringing a few points together.”
Captain Rohit Rajpal said both his wards executed the pre-planned strategy well. “Yuki played at a high level. He was match sharp. Ramkumar too played with confidence. He was sharp in the first set. The idea was to keep it low and trouble them. The players executed the strategy well. We had planned to go up 2-0 and we did that,” he said.
Now, the onus is on the pairing of Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan (they can still change the nomination) to see the tie through.
Results: Ramkumar Ramanathan bt Christian Sigsgaard 6-3, 6-2, Yuki Bhambri Mikael Torpegaard 6-4, 6-4.
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