Davis Cup lessons for India - from Serbia with love

Devvarman hugs Lavojic

Nestled deep inside the refreshing woods of Bengaluru’s soulful Cubbon Park, the KSLTA stadium is an obscure and unlikely venue for a high octane event like the Davis Cup. Surrounded by a thick cover of trees and lost amidst the lush green maze of the gardens that surround it, the sparkling blue and green tennis courts played host to the visiting Serbians last week.

These tourists were a rather different class of visitors from the ones that frequent the large park. A tight-knit unit of colour co-ordinated men were here in Bengaluru to bond together over some tennis. The red and white ensembles that covered their proud hearts only served to accentuate the serious nature of their expedition into a deceptively serene setting.

Using team colours as battle fatigue

The Serbian team appeared to have left every piece of garment that was not white or red at home. The team – players, captain and the support entourage – were constantly spotted in their national colours. And not just on court, we saw that even at the team hotel, even if they were down just for a quick meal.

On the other hand, the Indian team found it difficult to synchronise their colours even when playing matches. The team members were rarely together, walking their own paths soon after discharging their duties at the venue.

The Serbians would line their chairs and pack them next to each other like a row of well organised members from an artillery unit, ready for battle. In stark contrast, the Indian team would be seated in disjointed fashion, like wedding crashers dividing themselves into smaller units to avoid detection. Besides, they were all in varying shades of white, gray, blue and yellow from time to time.

In an engaging tussle of tennis between not so evenly matched teams, it was disappointing to see the Indian team not take care of the finer details in a setting of their own choice. Professional tennis is clearly an individual pursuit, but Davis Cup is an avenue to play the sport under the warm gaze of cheering compatriots in the quest of a common dream. It was difficult to see the team and feel that unifying spirit, even if they were filled with it in their souls.

Perception is just as important as performance in a team setting, and the Indian team surely missed a trick or two in that area over this past weekend.

It ain’t over till it is done

The Indian team did a spectacular job of raising from the dead after losing Friday’s opening rubbers and then falling behind by two sets and a break in the doubles on Saturday. Fuelled by the passion from a desperate crowd of ardent supporters, Leander Paes and Rohan Bopanna invoked the Houdini within them to somehow script an unlikely victory to push the tie to Sunday.

The Serbians, aroused by their stirring performance on the first day, were in an overwhelmingly positive mood, to nearly cocky levels. But the five-set loss from a position of strength served to halt them in their tracks.

Somdev Devvarman then drank from the positive energy of that incredible comeback to defeat Dusan Lajovic, striking the ball with ferocious consistency till his opponent just tired out and surrendered deep into the fifth set. And suddenly India were level, after appearing to be down and out at the end of the first day.

But the job was far from done. Filip Krajinovic refused to be cowed down, despite the momentum shifting clearly into India’s corner. Surprisingly, Yuki Bhambri failed to rouse himself by feeding off the energy that filled Indian hopes. The 153rd-ranked Indian played way below his potential to surrender meekly.

And just like that, Krajinovic turned hero by winning the crucial fifth and decisive rubber to carry his team to victory.

Crowd management is an essential ingredient

Amidst tall claims of a sell-out crowd by the KSLTA, the stadium was constantly half empty, betraying the significance of the event being played out inside the arena. It was a shame, because we could have had eager school children let inside to cheer vociferously for the Indian team from the word go. Eventually, they did announce a free Monday, but it was too late by then.

Interestingly, Bogdan Obradovic reminded reporters that Yuki Bhambri may have drawn some negative energy from the fact that the stadium was nearly vacated immediately after Somdev had won his match. It would’ve taken effort, but the authorities should have provided additional transport solutions during the tie to ensure that the crowd did not have to worry over their need to reach home safely.

Speaking to reporters after helping his team to an intense 3-2 win, Obradovic said, "The crowd can be a decisive factor in the Davis Cup. The tie was level at 2-2 and the fifth rubber had to be played. But the crowd, which was just incredible for Somdev Devvarman's match here last night, was almost reduced to half when Bhambri stepped on to the court." Obradovic wondered aloud about the effects of that on the 22-year-old Indian, adding, "Maybe, he picked up some negative energy because of that."

The KSLTA did not do the tie any favours by delaying the matches, which played out deep into the dark night. There was no public transport from the venue, compromising the ability of people to stay up to the end of the matches. A Serbian fan expressed his surprise at the empty seats that stared us in the face, asking, “Why don’t you people just give away tickets if necessary to get people inside the stadium?” He was clearly not able to fathom why India had squandered the home advantage.

The tie is lost and we are back fighting relegation next year, but unless some important lessons seep under the skin of entrenched tennis officials in India, it is difficult to see how the team might lift itself out of this deep quagmire.