Ramanathan overcomes dodgy serve to beat Uzbek’s Ismailov 6-2, 5-7, 6-2, 7-5 for India to make a winning start
India's Ramkumar Ramanathan celebrates his win over Uzbekistan's Temur Ismailov in the first singles rubber of the Asia/Oceania Davis Cup tie at KSLTA Stadium in Bangalore yesterday. pic/pti
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Bangalore: Ramkumar Ramanathan had several obstacles to overcome at the KSLTA Stadium yesterday. Energy sapping heat, an opponent who hit the right gears several times, his own serve -- an ally and a point of concern at the same time. But the World No. 267 found a way to surmount each of those hurdles en route his 6-2, 5-7, 6-2, 7-5 win over Uzbekistan's Temur Ismailov in the first singles rubber of the Asia/Oceania Davis Cup tie to give India a 1-0 lead.
Quite a struggle for Ram
The first set did not provide many hints about the struggles that were awaiting Ramkumar. He broke Ismailov in the third and fifth game to wrap the set easily 6-2. But he faced a different Ismailov in the next set. The Uzbek landed his big first serves more often and attacked Ramkumar's backhand, which is often a slice and a seemingly weak point in his game. At the same time, his own first serve, which often crossed the 200 kmph mark in the first set, began to let down the Indian.
In fact, Ramkumar served seven double faults in the second set alone, three in a row at one point, and dropped his serve in the eighth and 12th games to surrender the second set. "Double faults happen in tennis. I am working on my service. Three double faults in a row are not good. But the good thing is that I came back well after losing the second set. I should not doubt serve in the next match," said Ramkumar. "In the second, I was a bit defensive. He stepped up a bit as well. I wanted to play aggressively and use my forehand. But I felt a bit of pressure at that time. My coach and teammates told me to hang on and focus on points," he said.
Uzbekistan's Temur Ismailov
Just when the Uzbek man seemed to have measured the pace and bounce of the court, a thigh sprain slowed him down.
Ramkumar exploited the opportunity. He began to approach the net increasingly, putting pressure on Ismailov who on occasions did not even bother to chase down balls.
Bhupathi's intervention
Ramkumar said his opponent's injury did not help him even one bit. "He was a bit tired in the third set, but playing against a tired player actually breaks your rhythm. Fortunately, the captain was egging me on to stay calm and focussed," he said.
In the fourth set that went with the serve till 5-5, Ismailov blinked in the 11th game -- two heavy forehands giving the Indian the break. In the final game, Ramkumar served two aces and three double faults -- two of them on match point -- before finishing the match with a volley. "It's good to have a win under belt. Hopefully, we can finish off on a high note," he said.
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