Bengaluru, Nov 13 (IANS) The Indian women’s tennis team is all set for what could turn out to be a career-defining contest for them, as they look to overcome the challenge of the Netherlands and Slovenia in the Billie Jean King Cup Playoff at the SM Krishna Tennis Stadium in Bengaluru.
Placed in Group G, India will take on Slovenia on Saturday, and then the Netherlands on Sunday, with the winner of the group progressing to the World Group qualifiers of the Billie Jean King Cup.
A confident India hopes that their process and confidence, coupled with the home support, will provide them with the platform for a memorable performance on home turf.
Speaking about playing at home, captain Vishal Uppal said, “It is definitely an honour and it is very special for us to be playing the Billie Jean King Cup Playoff in Bengaluru. I think Indian women’s tennis is definitely on the right path, and we’re very excited to play here. I think playing in India is a privilege for us, and we’re very excited to play here.”
The Indian team will have its task cut out when they take on Slovenia and the Netherlands. When asked about the team’s preparations and the pressure of the big stage, captain Vishal Uppal said, “Since we played in April in Pune, we have kept in touch and we have been monitoring each other’s progress. And it’s just about becoming one cohesive unit and working towards a common goal.”
He further explained, “We’re focusing on our process, on what we have to do. We do know we’re going up against two very quality teams. What we have control over is the effort and the attitude we’re going to come up with. And the atmosphere in the team, the environment is great.”
One of the team’s most promising and youngest players in the Indian team, Sahaja Yamalapalli, echoed the coach’s thoughts and explained that having the team together is always a great thing. She said, “I think it’s great that there’s a team around us and we can always fall back on each other and, you know, we have a great camaraderie in the team. When they bring that team environment in tennis, I think it just brings a different perspective to us also.”
The Group G contests in Bengaluru will commence with 19th-ranked Slovenia and 14th-ranked the Netherlands, both of whom are upbeat and looking to make an impression. Speaking about the preparations for the Slovenian side, Tamara Zidanšek said, “We actually came quite early, which was great because it’s a very different type of condition in terms of a little bit of altitude. The court is really bouncy. And the balls are jumping high, so it’s been good to have a couple of extra days to prepare.”
Meanwhile, the Netherlands, the highest-ranked team in the Group, praised the organisation of the tournament in Bengaluru and said that the team felt very much at home.
Looking ahead to the opening contest against Slovenia, a team they have played last year, Captain Elise Tamaëla said, “Every match is different and we have a lot of confidence from last year. We know we can beat them. We have a very nice and good team. And I think in a country, anything can happen. We can beat higher-ranked players. We can lose against lower-ranked players. So anything is open. I think the most important thing is that I prepared and we prepared the team well. And I think we are well prepared.”
With preparations in full swing, all three teams are now fully settled in Bengaluru, where India and Slovenia having arrived on 8 November and the Netherlands on 10 November, and have been training on the hard courts of the S.M. Krishna Tennis Stadium. As India prepares to host the Billie Jean King Cup Play-offs for the very first time, anticipation continues to grow ahead of the Group G fixtures.
The battles unfold across three thrilling afternoons: Slovenia vs. Netherlands on Friday, 14 November, India vs. Slovenia on Saturday, 15 November, and the much-awaited India vs. Netherlands encounter on Sunday, 16 November. Each tie serves up top-tier tennis from 3:00 PM IST.
Squads:
Team India: Sahaja Yamalapalli, Shrivalli Bhamidipathy, Ankita Raina, Riya Bhatia, and Prarthana Thombare.
Team Netherlands: Suzan Lamens, Arantxa Rus, Anouk Koevermans, and Demi Schuurs.
Team Slovenia: Tamara Zidansek, Kaja Juvan, Dalila Jakupovic, and Nika Radisic
–IANS
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