Daijiworld Media Network - Pune

Pune, Dec 24: India on Tuesday announced its squad for the Davis Cup Qualifiers Round 1 tie against the Netherlands, scheduled to be held in Bengaluru in February, with Sumit Nagal and Dhakshineswar Suresh set to lead the singles challenge.

In a notable selection call, Sriram Balaji was left out of the squad, while Karan Singh was preferred over Aryan Shah for the third singles position, keeping future planning and playing conditions in mind.

Nagal and Dhakshineswar, who played a key role in India’s 3-1 victory over Switzerland in the World Group 1 tie in September, will once again shoulder the responsibility in singles. India’s top-ranked doubles player Yuki Bhambri, currently ranked 21 in the world, will pair up with Rithvik Choudary Bollipalli (ranked 90) for the doubles rubber.

Balaji had partnered Rithvik in the previous tie against Switzerland after Bhambri was sidelined due to injury.

Explaining the selection, national selection committee chairman Nandan Bal said that Nagal, Dhakshineswar and Bhambri were automatic choices. “Despite his low ranking, DK is clearly our No. 2. He is on par with Sumit,” he said.

On the choice between Karan Singh and Aryan Shah, Bal said the decision was based on form and playing conditions. “There is not much difference between Karan and Aryan in terms of ranking. We had to consider current form and the altitude in Bengaluru. Karan recently beat Aryan in a Challenger event in Australia and has a bigger game,” he added.

India Squad:

Sumit Nagal, Dhakshineswar Suresh, Karan Singh, Yuki Bhambri, Rithvik Choudary Bollipalli

Captain: Rohit Rajpal

Reserve: Aryan Shah

Standbys: Anirudh Chandrasekar, Digvijay Singh, Prajwal Dev, Arnav Paparkar

India will be aiming to make a strong start in the qualifiers as they look to secure a place in the next stage of the prestigious team competition.