Ramkumar, Sumit win singles ties with ease to put team 2-0 ahead against Pakistan
India's Sumit Nagal beat Pakistan's Hufaiza Mohammed Rehman 6-0, 6-2 in the second singles of the Davis Cup tie in Kazakhstan yesterday
Nur-Sultan (Kazakhstan): A ruthless India raced to a 2-0 lead in their Davis Cup tie for the loss of just two games as Ramkumar Ramanathan and Sumit Nagal toyed with their teen rivals from Pakistan, here on Friday. In a mismatch of epic proportion, Ramkumar double-bageled Muhammed Shoaib, 17, in just 42 minutes in the opening singles.
The only time Shoaib made it look like a match was in the sixth game of the second set when he stretched Ramkumar to two deuce points. Sumit Nagal then earned his first Davis Cup win, beating Hufaiza Mohammed Rehman 6-0, 6-2 in the second singles which lasted 64 minutes. Pakistan badly missed its top players who pulled out, protesting against shifting of the matches to a neutral venue.
ADVERTISEMENT
Gave my best: Ramkumar
"I gave my best in every point. We are happy with 2-0 on the first day. Now we are looking forward to see Jeevan Nedunchezhiyan and Leander fire some bombs tomorrow. Let's get the job done," said Ramkumar, who also thanked fans who had gathered to support them. While the first match was not even a contest, promising Pakistani youngster Hufaiza resisted Nagal as much as possible by engaging the Indian in long rallies. Twice he pushed Nagal to deuce points in the second game of the second set and finally put Pakistan on board by holding the third game after squandering four game points. He returned and dished out another hold, staying close to Nagal.
Ramkumar Ramanathan
However, it just delayed the inevitable as Nagal wrapped up the match in the eighth game. "I started decent and finished it pretty strong. Both of us [he and Ram] had lot of fire today. We did not want to lose. They are juniors but they played well and did whatever they could. The guy I played came up with some really good shots. He played to his potential but has a long way to go," said Nagal. "Tomorrow's it's going to be pretty similar [scoreline]," said Nagal.
'Fantastic day'
India's non-playing captain Rohit Rajpal too was pleased with the performance. "It is a fantastic day for India. Ram gave us a nice start, winning in quick time. The second match was little tighter and tough, though it looked simple. Sumit kept the level high and came through with flying colours," he said.
Catch up on all the latest sports news and updates here. Also download the new mid-day Android and iOS apps to get latest updates
This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
