India vs Pakistan Davis Cup Decision Revealed

Published 02/23/2019, 5:32 AM EST

The Indian tennis team’s visit to Pakistan for the Davis Cup Group 1 tie was sceptical since the time both the teams were drawn to play against in Pakistan. The All India Tennis Association (AITA) did not appeal to shift the venue from Islamabad, Pakistan after the dreadful terror attack in Pulwama, India which claimed the lives 40 Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) personnel on February 14. Since the Indian government holds the Pakistani organisation responsible for the ghastly situation and the ceaseless political confrontations between the two nations has compelled AITA to reassess their decision to cross the periphery of their Indian territory.

There were speculations that team India might turn down their participation for the Davis Cup match in September in their neighbouring country but they have now confirmed their engagement in the event. The Pakistan Tennis Federation (PTF) will be hosting the Indian tennis team on the grass courts of their capital city, Islamabad. PTF has contacted AITA hosting the Davis Cup tie in Islamabad. Like India, Pakistan is a developing nation in tennis and taking into account the recent terror attacks, both the associations had to rethink upon his decision to play.

Since the beginning, AITA was optimistic about sending their players across the border as according to the regulations of the International Tennis Federation (ITF), Indians would be disqualified if they refuse to play. “We have not requested for a change in venue. All such reports are baseless,” AITA Secretary General Hironmoy Chatterjee mentioned. “The tie is still far off. We will play in September and we cannot predict what the (political) condition will be sitting in February. We will not discuss the matter only now. The tie is not in doubt.”

Earlier, the Hong Kong Tennis Association had denied their participation in Pakistan for the Asia-Oceania Zone Group 11 tie in April 2017. Consequently, the Hong Kong tennis team was fined $10,000 by the International Tennis Federation (ITF) for that act and also they were downgraded to Asia Oceania Zone Group 3 in 2018.

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Mahalakshmi Murali joined EssentiallySports in 2018 as a tennis author and has gone on to pen more than 1800 engaging articles, probing into various aspects of the sport and its illustrious players. With her expertise on the sport, Mahalakshmi has interviewed stalwarts from the sport such as Serena WIlliams’ coach Patrick Mouratoglou and Kevin Anderson’s physio, Carlos Costa. Equipped with her vast experience and a keen understanding of the sport, Mahalakshmi now co-heads the tennis department.