The victorious Davis Cup squad received a well-deserved heroes’ welcome from the sports fraternity.
A packed press conference room, relentless flashing of cameras, never-ending questions and multiple channels fighting to capture "exclusive" bytes from their heroes -- these are scenes usually reserved for our ‘demi-god' cricketers. On Monday evening, the scene was different as tennis got its fair share of media spotlight as India's Davis Cup new boys came to the town.
A swanky 7-star hotel in New Delhi was teeming with all and sundry from the sports fraternity. The media was on full show, what with several TV crew armed to the teeth with their OB Vans for LIVE broadcast of a tennis event. Unthinkable on the eve of the ICC Champions Trophy in Johannesburg! Somdev Devvarman, Yuki Bhambri and Rohan Bopanna were the cynosure of all eyes. The 4-1 victory against South Africa in a World Group play-off, sans any major contribution from Lee and Hesh, has indeed galvanized a set of tennis upstarts.
India's entry into the World Group after 11 years was reason enough to party. And the team deserved it. An outstanding Somdev fought back from a two-set deficit to beat South Africa's top player Rik de Voest 3-6, 6-7, 7-6, 6-2, 6-4 in a marathon thriller to clinch the decisive singles. It paved the way for the fourth member of the side, Yuki Bhambri, to make his Davis Cup debut. It turned out to be an unbelievable one.
Yuki won his debut match against Izak Van der Merwe 3-6, 6-3, 6-4 to seal an emphatic win. The Delhi boy said, "It was like a dream come true. I always wanted to be a part of the Davis Cup team. After being given the opportunity and to win a match is the best thing that has happened to me. It was fun.
"The atmosphere was so electrifying. There were lots of people out there. It was good to have lot of people around cheering for you and rooting for you. It was totally a different experience. This is one memory which probably I will never forget."
Seasoned administrators like Anil Khanna, the secretary of the All India Tennis Association, have most often than not remained in the pale shadows of the Pawars, Dalmiyas and Modis. But on Monday night, Khanna, too, was basking in the glory of the sensational success of his tennis team.
Khanna did not miss the opportunity to flaunt India's unique record in Davis Cup among Asian countries on this special night. "In the last two decades, only two nations have qualified for the World Group finals. India feature alongside Korea, who were there in the 2008 elite group. India enjoyed the special status six times in the last two decades. This is a great achievement and it shows the supremacy of Indian tennis in Asia."
Qualifying for the elite World Group is fantatstic. Keeping that place will be the challenge. It's definitely the start of a new era.
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