Andreas Seppi outclasses Prajnesh Gunneswaran to help his team qualify for World Finals.
Divij Sharan (left) and Rohan Bopanna won the doubles rubber
Kolkata:
Trailing 0-2 after losing the opening day’s singles rubbers, doubles pair of Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan kept India’s slender hopes alive by beating Simone Boelleli and Matteo Berrettini 4-6 6-3 6-4 in an one-hour 43 minutes battle.
But it only delayed the world number 10 Italy’s march into the Finals as world number 37 Andreas Seppi outclassed top-ranked Indian Prajnesh Gunneswaran 6-1 6-4 in 62 minutes in the first reverse singles to render the fifth rubber unnecessary at the Calcutta South Club.
On a career high ranking of 102, Prajnesh had no chance in the first set and though the left-hander gave a better account of himself in the second set a share of 40 unforced errors dashed his hopes. World number 19 India will now compete in the Zone Group action later this year.
Terming it frustrating, Indian non-playing captain Mahesh Bhupathi said: “All of us had a belief but we needed to win a point yesterday. It was a monumental task to win back from 0-2 down.”
Italy boasts of three players inside top-60 but no Indian feature in the world’s top 100 and Bhupathi said the country needs to do a reality check after the loss.
“We need to come into the real world. Once the Madrid list (of 12 nations) is out, I want you to see if they have any player outside top-100. Of course, we were dying to go to Madrid. But you can’t expect miracles,” he said.
Having got a first-round bye, India advanced to the World Group play-offs after defeating China 3-2 in the Asia/Oceania Zone Group I in Tianjin. It lost to Serbia 4-0 in the World Group play-offs in Kraljevo to be drawn against Italy which lost to France 1-3 in the quarters in Genoa.
“It’s been great to work with them. Prajnesh has made all the way up to 102 from 300 in two years. There’s a lot of potential,” Bhupathi, whose term is also coming to an end with the Davis Cup tie, said. Italy thus extended its head-to-head record against India to 5-1 with the host having an upper hand at the same grass courts in 1985.
In the must-win rubber, Bopanna and Sharan upped the ante by breaking newcomer Berrettini in the fourth game of the second set before sealing the issue.
Making a comeback for the first time since 2012, southpaw Sharan complemented senior pro Bopanna and wrapped up the match with a forehand volley winner in the end.
“We had good understanding and we kept fighting. Yes, there was pressure playing for India. But it felt normal having Rohan by my side. I really enjoy playing on grass. I just kept it simple without trying anything extra,” Sharan said.
Earlier in the day, Berrettini’s sterling show in his debut on Friday earned him a spot in the doubles match in place of its top player Marco Cecchinato.
Berrettini impressed with his big, powerful serves and did well in company of doubles specialist Bollelli, who had won the 2015 Australian Open.
India lived up to its reputation in doubles but that was not enough as Italy secured a 3-1 triumph after winning the first reverse singles on Saturday to storm into the first-ever Davis Cup World Finals.
Trailing 0-2 after losing the opening day’s singles rubbers, doubles pair of Rohan Bopanna and Divij Sharan kept India’s slender hopes alive by beating Simone Boelleli and Matteo Berrettini 4-6 6-3 6-4 in an one-hour 43 minutes battle.
But it only delayed the world number 10 Italy’s march into the Finals as world number 37 Andreas Seppi outclassed top-ranked Indian Prajnesh Gunneswaran 6-1 6-4 in 62 minutes in the first reverse singles to render the fifth rubber unnecessary at the Calcutta South Club.
On a career high ranking of 102, Prajnesh had no chance in the first set and though the left-hander gave a better account of himself in the second set a share of 40 unforced errors dashed his hopes. World number 19 India will now compete in the Zone Group action later this year.
Terming it frustrating, Indian non-playing captain Mahesh Bhupathi said: “All of us had a belief but we needed to win a point yesterday. It was a monumental task to win back from 0-2 down.”
Italy boasts of three players inside top-60 but no Indian feature in the world’s top 100 and Bhupathi said the country needs to do a reality check after the loss.
“We need to come into the real world. Once the Madrid list (of 12 nations) is out, I want you to see if they have any player outside top-100. Of course, we were dying to go to Madrid. But you can’t expect miracles,” he said.
Having got a first-round bye, India advanced to the World Group play-offs after defeating China 3-2 in the Asia/Oceania Zone Group I in Tianjin. It lost to Serbia 4-0 in the World Group play-offs in Kraljevo to be drawn against Italy which lost to France 1-3 in the quarters in Genoa.
“It’s been great to work with them. Prajnesh has made all the way up to 102 from 300 in two years. There’s a lot of potential,” Bhupathi, whose term is also coming to an end with the Davis Cup tie, said. Italy thus extended its head-to-head record against India to 5-1 with the host having an upper hand at the same grass courts in 1985.
In the must-win rubber, Bopanna and Sharan upped the ante by breaking newcomer Berrettini in the fourth game of the second set before sealing the issue.
Making a comeback for the first time since 2012, southpaw Sharan complemented senior pro Bopanna and wrapped up the match with a forehand volley winner in the end.
“We had good understanding and we kept fighting. Yes, there was pressure playing for India. But it felt normal having Rohan by my side. I really enjoy playing on grass. I just kept it simple without trying anything extra,” Sharan said.
Earlier in the day, Berrettini’s sterling show in his debut on Friday earned him a spot in the doubles match in place of its top player Marco Cecchinato.
Berrettini impressed with his big, powerful serves and did well in company of doubles specialist Bollelli, who had won the 2015 Australian Open.