MUMBAI: Former India Davis Cup captain Anand Amritaj has ripped into the country’s top-ranked players who have recently turned down the chance to represent the nation in the prestigious team competition.
India’s expected demolition of minnows Togo in New Delhi on Sunday came without top singles player Sumit Nagal and Yuki Bhambri, the second ranked doubles player in the country.
Nagal’s case particularly garnered attention after the All India Tennis Association (Aita) had recently claimed that the 27-year-old had demanded an annual fee of $50,000 to play Davis Cup ties for India. The player defended his stand in a lengthy post on social media, saying “it is standard practice in professional sports for athletes to be compensated for their participation in events, even when representing their country”.
Amritraj, who worked with Nagal when he held the role of captain a few years ago, described the idea as “inconceivable”.
“To me personally, it is just inconceivable that if you are ranked high enough and the country wants you to play, that you would play without any financial compensation,” Amritraj told reporters here on the sidelines of the L&T Mumbai Open at the Cricket Club of India on Monday.
“Unless you are injured and you can’t walk on the court, other than that, there should be no question that you’re going to play Davis Cup. Same for me, same for Vijay,” he added, referring to his brother with whom he helped India reach the 1974 Davis Cup finals against South Africa.
“Both of us felt that it is the greatest honour that you can have to play for your country. Maybe this is old-school thinking, but that is absolutely how it should be.
“You got 50 weeks in the year to make money, two weeks of the year, you should be able to give to places you grew up in, and it should be an honour and a privilege.”
On Nagal’s case, the 73-yearold said: “I like Sumit, when I was captain he was the reserve on my team five years ago. I got along very well with him, but he didn’t play the last tie (vs Sweden in Sept) either, which is really a shame because he is our best player right now.”
Asked if there should be strong repercussions for players who choose to not turn up for national team duties, Amritraj said it was a tricky situation as players could always lean on the “independence of the ATP Tour” to make their decisions.
With some Indian players, however, enjoying government funding through programmes like the Target Olympic Podium Scheme (TOPS), it could be a way for Aita to crack the whip, Amritraj felt.
“That’s where you should put the screws on them. I think you should definitely do that. If you’re in any kind of place with some leverage, you should say: ‘Either you play Davis Cup, or you won’t get this’. Simple.”