Sumit Nagal Returns To Davis Cup Fold After 2 Years, Ramkumar Ramanathan Dropped
He did not travel to Pakistan for the historic tie in February 2024 and also missed the subsequent matches against Sweden and Togo.
Nagal has dropped outside the top-300 bracket due to lack of form and unfavourable results this season. A semifinal finish at the Trieste Challenger in Italy this month has been his best showing this season.
Apart from Nagal (ranked 306), India chose singles players in Karan Singh (403) and young Aryan Shah (442). Sasikumar Mukund (463) and talented Dakshineshwar Suresh (790) will be the reserve singles players for the tie.
Top-ranked Bhambri (ranked 35), and N Sriram Balaji (75) are the doubles players chosen in the squad which will have Rithvik Bollipalli (77) as reserve.
Bhambri had travelled to Pakistan and contributed to the team's 4-0 win against the hosts in Islamabad but has not featured in the national team since then.
The tie will be played on the indoor courts, which are likely to be fast. Nagal's game is best suited for slower courts.
"Sumit Nagal had a great journey to top-100. He plays at a high level, he can make those adjustments. It's not going to be easy. In the Denmark tie against Holger Rune, it was a tight match.We have to see what kind of bounce the court offers," India skipper Rohit Rajpal told PTI.
Asked about Dakshineshwar's inclusion ahead of a few higher-ranked players, Rajpal said, "We have been studying his game for some time. His hard court game is good. He is 6'5" and has a big serve, and this is going to be an asset on fast indoors courts. I think, he has a crucial role to play in this tie.
"We will have practice matches and pick the final team on form, fitness and match sharpness," he added.
Rajpal also informed that young Manas Dhamne was available for selection only if he was in the playing squad.
"I don't like these conditions but he has a bright future and this time we have accepted his decision. He wants to up his ranking by playing tournaments." It will be interesting to see Switzerland's line-up. They had lost to Spain 1-3 in the Davis Cup qualifiers.
Jerome Kym is their highest-ranked singles player at number 145, followed by Stan Wawrinka (156), Marc-Andrea Huesler (170) and Dominic Stricker (205).
Rajpal said rankings do not reflect the right picture of the European players.
"In Europe, they do not play many tournaments so their ranking is not high but they can easily beat the top-100 players. It's going to be a tough tie. The Indian team is going through a transition phase and we need to develop players for the future." It may be mentioned that all tennis players receiving funds under various government schemes had given an undertaking that they will make themselves available for national duty.
The selection committee led by former Davis Cup coach Nandan Bal dropped Ramkumar Ramanathan from the squad. His axing was expected since the 30-year-old has been struggling on the Tour this season.
Ramkumar is one player who can smoothly switch from singles to doubles and vice versa but his form has not been encouraging as he is even struggling to enter the main draws of the singles events on the Challenger Circuit.
HEAD-TO-HEAD ========= India have competed against Switzerland thrice, emerging winners twice.
The last time the two sides competed was way back in 1993 when hosts India edged Switzerland 3-2 on the grass courts of the Calcutta South Club.
The winning team will compete in the 2026 Davis Cup Qualifiers while the losing nation will get back to the World Group I Play-offs next year.
Davis Cup Squad: Singles: Sumit Nagal, Karan Singh and Aryan Shah.
Doubles: Yuki Bhambri and N Sriram Balaji.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
News18
38 minutes ago
- News18
Atwal finishes T24 at Senior Open
Agency: PTI London, Jul 28 (PTI) Arjun Atwal sunk in six birdies but also gave away five bogeys, two of them in the last five holes, for a final round of 1-under 69 to finish tied-24th alongside defending champion KJ Choi at the ISPS HANDA Senior Open at Sunningdale. Atwal with cards 67-72-69-71 totalled 3-under for the week and was the top Indian, as Jeev Milkha Singh (69) was T-56 and Jyoti Randhawa (73) T-61. It is the first time three Indians made the cut a Major, men or women or Seniors. Atwal, playing only his second event of the year, said, 'I have not been able to get many starts but played well this week. Hopefully more starts will make things better." Pádraig Harrington wrote his name into history as he became the fifth player to win both The Open and Senior Open. The Irishman, who secured his second U.S. Senior Open title last month, finished three strokes ahead of fellow former Ryder Cup Captain Thomas Bjørn and 1997 Open winner Justin Leonard to claim his third Senior Major victory. Harrington, who won The Open in 2007 and defended the Championship in 2008, joins Bob Charles, Darren Clarke, Gary Player and Tom Watson as the only men in history to have won both the Claret Jug and Senior Open Trophy. The 53-year-old started the day with a two-stroke lead over Leonard, which he immediately increased to three after an eagle at the first on the Old Course at Sunningdale. Further gains at the sixth and ninth holes saw his lead extend to four strokes after the turn, but Bjørn moved to within two after a run of four birdies in six holes from the ninth. The Dane's momentum was halted by a bogey at the 16th and, despite dropping a shot of his own on the 17th, Harrington held a three-stroke lead on the 18th tee. Harrington hit his approach safely on the 18th green and had two putts for par for a three under par 67, a 16 under par total and his 11th victory since joining the over-50s ranks. Playing partner Leonard signed for a two under par round of 68 and a 13 under par total. Australian Scott Hend finished the week in fourth place on 12 under par, while Ernie Els and Cameron Percy shared fifth on 11 under. PTI AT AT view comments First Published: July 28, 2025, 16:15 IST Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
News18
43 minutes ago
- News18
Divya Deshmukh beats Humpy in Womens World Cup final, becomes GM
Last Updated: Batumi (Georgia), Jul 28 (PTI) Teenaged Indian chess player Divya Deshmukh earned the biggest success of her career by clinching the FIDE Women's World Cup with a tie-break win over compatriot and more experienced Koneru Humpy here on Monday. The victory not just earned the 19-year-old the prestigious title, but also made her a Grandmaster, something which looked improbable when she started the tournament. She is only the fourth woman from India to become a Grandmaster, and the 88th overall. The victory for the Nagpur player came after the two classical games played on Saturday and Sunday ended in draws. In the time-controlled tie-breaker on Monday, Divya, playing with white, was again held to a draw. But in the reverse game, where she had black pieces, she managed to overcome the two-time world rapid champion 2.5-1.5. PTI AM PM AM PM PM Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
News18
an hour ago
- News18
Anshul Kamboj To Be Dropped, Kuldeep Yadav Can Come In India's 11 For 5th Test: Report
Last Updated: Anshul Kamboj will be replaced by Akash Deep, Arshdeep Singh could debut, and Kuldeep Yadav might replace Shardul Thakur in India's 11 for the final Test against England. The Indian men's team has reportedly lined up several changes for the final Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy. According to a report in PTI, pacer Anshul Kamboj, who made an underwhelming and visibly nervous debut in the fourth game at Old Trafford, is set to make way for fit-again Akash Deep. The report said left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh has also recovered from his hand injury and could be ready for a chance. Although head coach Gautam Gambhir declared all pacers fit after the draw in Manchester, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj have bowled excessively throughout the series and might be rested. Bumrah has already played the three Tests he said he'd be available for, but with the series on the line, it could change. If it doesn't, Arshdeep could have a good chance to come back. Meanwhile, the report added that the case for Kuldeep Yadav coming in is 'stronger than ever' and he could come in for all-rounder Shardul Thakur. Thakur scored a decent 41 with the bat in the first innings but bowled a measly 11 overs across the Test for no wickets. 'So Kuldeep, we are trying to find a way for him, but it is just (that we need) more consistent runs from our top six, so that we can bring a guy like Kuldeep in," India bowling coach Morne Morkel said earlier in the series. 'It's finding when he comes in, how we can find balance and how we can get that batting line-up to be a little bit longer and stronger. We've seen in the past that we've lost wickets in clumps. Kuldeep is world-class and he's bowling really well at the moment, so we're trying our best to find ways for him to get in," he had added. While these changes would be confirmed later, one substitute is certain: Dhruv Jurel is coming in for Rishabh Pant. Pant is injured and ruled out of the series and Jurel, who was already keeping wickets in the previous game, would come in full time. It would be interesting to see where he bats, though, considering, Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar did exceedingly well at number five and six in Manchester. view comments Disclaimer: Comments reflect users' views, not News18's. Please keep discussions respectful and constructive. Abusive, defamatory, or illegal comments will be removed. News18 may disable any comment at its discretion. By posting, you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
