Leander should have been in the mix for Davis Cup, says Mahesh Bhupathi

Two days before the India Italy Davis Cup is set to play out in Kolkata's South Club, non-playing captain Mahesh Bhupathi seems to have a grip on the situation as is apparent through the various interactions with National media. In a recent one with Times of India, he speaks about dispelling myths about friction within the country's top Tennis players and his excitement at being a part of the historic new format of Davis Cup matches while also adding that it is important for team captains to be a part of the selection process for the Davis Cup. Bhupathi, additionally, also seems to be optimistic about India's chances.

"India have always been dominant in Asia , even when our boys have not been highly ranked we have had great results," he was quoted as saying. Speaking about the spat with Leander Paes and his non-appearance in the Davis Cup team, Bhupathi called for more transperancy in the selection process. "The AITA needs to find a way to involve whoever is the captain in the selection process," he was quoted as saying. "You can't have selectors sitting behind closed doors and then handing over a set of players to the captain and saying 'go win' on a particular surface where they don't even know if half the players are left handed or right handed." There also had been rumors about a rift between Rohan Bopanna and Leander Paes with the former reportedly refusing to play Doubles with Paes. Dispelling them, Bhupathi added, "Rohan is open to playing with whoever he has to play with." "Honestly, if I were consulted in selection I'd have said Leander definitely has to be in the mix when it's a grass court tie in Kolkata, but I am never consulted." "He has the passion when it comes to Davis Cup, nobody has witnessed how he raises his level as closely as I have. If anybody argues Leander's ability in Davis Cup, he's never going to win against me."